


Midoriya Izuku: Blood of the Earth

by Ironclad_Heart



Category: League of Legends, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: BAMF Midoriya Izuku, Dead Midoriya Inko, F/M, Hatsume Mei & Midoriya Izuku Friendship, Mei Hatsume is less One Dimensional, Midoriya Izuku Does Not Have One for All Quirk, Midoriya Izuku Has PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Midoriya Izuku Has a Quirk, Midoriya Izuku Needs A Hug, Midoriya Izuku is Bad at Feelings, Oh gawd now his brother is in the story, Original Character(s), Ornn is Bad at Feelings, Ornn is Midoriya Izuku's Grandfather, Ornn is Mood, Parental Nedzu (My Hero Academia), Protective Nedzu (My Hero Academia), Protective Ornn, Support Department Midoriya Izuku
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-31
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-01 05:02:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 24,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23409514
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ironclad_Heart/pseuds/Ironclad_Heart
Summary: Midoriya Izuku awoke to the sound of the fire alarm. Everything around him was in flames. Panic engulfed him. He ran to escape the apartment, crying for his mother... She didn't make it out. First responders tried to help him until one caught fire by proximity. The fear and the screams made everything worse, before long Izuku was coated in fire and dripping lava from his limbs. His cries for help haunted everyone around him, no one was able to go near him. In the end he seemed to burn so hot he disappeared into a molten pool at his feet. No one saw or heard Midoriya Izuku again. Until one day an application and attached support gear diagram with his name on it showed up in Power Loader's Mailbox. With a quiet, brooding, teen staring him down in defiance of the fact that he was deemed dead. With hair that looked like red peppers, ram horns growing from his heavy brow, glowing with inner heat, Midoriya Izuku is alive and he's here to forge the greatest tools known to Hero-Kind.
Relationships: Hatsume Mei/Midoriya Izuku, Midoriya Izuku & Ornn
Comments: 27
Kudos: 397





	1. Stoke the Fires

The nightmare was always the same. A loud, horrible keening wail. The room a billowing fire. It spread and consumed everything. He ran in fear, the wail became his mother's voice, calling out for him. He cries back into the black smoke but it swallows his words, all he hears is her cries. He wakes with start, tears hissing their way down his face. They quickly turn to steam in the heat. He can't remember her voice. Not really, its been too long. Too many years here in the Hearth. All he knows of sounds is the groaning of the cavern, the rumble of the magma falls, the ring of hammers, and what passes for conversation between him and his grandfather.

He blinked away the sleep and the tears, they came frequently but they never stayed long. It was enough to remind him of what sadness was. Here in the Hearth though, there was little point to them. The plethora of tools, armor, weapons, and myriad other works did not share his burden. And he had learned long ago what his Grandfather thought of _feelings_. He stood up from the small kiln he had lain against. It was warm and sturdy, it was more than enough for him to rest on. He looked to his current work, a personal project... and a secret one. He had taken a dark corner out of the way of the rest of the forge complex that sprawled out on the plateau atop the spire of rock that stood above the caldera. He hadn't taken any of the magma pooling below, every ounce of metal in its construction was from his own grade of molten secretions. Years of hard work and harder tutelage by his grandfather meant it was on par with molten deep strata, ready to be shaped and forged.

It was nearly done. The last careful application of tools and expertise were needed to finish it. With it, he would do something he had dreamed of doing for years... leaving. Since the day when his quirk had manifested and taken his old life and dreams from him, he held on to one dream. He did not hate his grandfather for taking him or teaching him. No one else was fit to do it with the quirk he possessed. But he longed to return, to find out the fate of his mother, and to pursue a dream that had survived to this day. He could never be a hero with so dangerous a quirk, but he could use it to arm and support heroes, possibly the best of them.

A distant rumble was followed by a familiar sound, the sound of rock turning molten. Izuku didn't panic, panic had been tempered out of him. He moved with clean turns and strides, gathering the pieces of his personal project and quickly tucking them into a footlocker he had made for his personal possessions. Ornn did not pry, if Izuku thought he had something worth showing, he would bring it forward to be judged. Many times it was met with a disappointed frown that simply said _you can do better_ , but sometimes he would nod in approval. Recently he had received repeated gestures of approval and even subtle esteem from his Grandfather. Izuku had taken it as a sign that now was the time to end his apprenticeship. The last of the carefully sorted pieces found their place and the footlocker closed shut. Moments later, Ornn lifted the hard canvas curtain divider that lent the space some privacy.

"Your awake. Good, come. Time for breakfast." With that Ornn let the divider fall back into place before stomping away. Izuku moved to leave, pausing for a moment at the entrance to his workspace to give one last glance back to his footlocker. "...Soon mother. One way or another."

** Meanwhile in Mustafu Middle School **

Bakugo Kastuki laid back at his desk, glaring at his neighbors. It had been hard going throughout his school days. People always doubting his strength, doubting his right to be the next number one hero. His life had been one fight after another. Plenty tried to knock him down, a few managed it, he got right back up and kicked them all to the curb. He had earned a reputation as a violent delinquent from more than one teacher but he kept passing courses with high marks. A solution was found when the PE teacher got Bakugo to attend after school martial arts, giving him a place to vent and establish his supremacy. But over the years it also taught him some humility and self control. He was still combative by nature but at least he waited until off campus to issue his challenges.

"Looks like Bakugo applied to UA. Well Mr. Bakugo I wish you luck getting there." Bakugo smirked before replying, "Thanks teacher, though I'm pretty confident I'll get in. After all, _no one is stronger than me!_ "

_** Back in the Hearth ** _

The last details on Izuku's project was about to be finished. The sounds of soldering could be heard but rather than use a soldering iron, Izuku focused his quirk to his finger and thumb, melting and filling the space with molten metal. It was more precise than you might think, Izuku could feel the material setting as he wanted it. At last, he was finished, a quick wipe of residual material on a tray for slag and other runoff and he inspected his work. Something he had realized after a few previous escape attempts, Ornn didn't need to do anything to keep him there. Izuku couldn't _'shut off'_ his quirk, meaning he constantly emanated a wave of heat on par with the exhaust of a blast furnace. His steps left behind flaming imprints, things caught fire around him. Years ago, burrowing his way up out of the caldera the first time to find out he was living under Mount Fuji was a surprise. But his sojern above ground didn't end well, the little fires he started among the scrub plants and rocks melting like candlewax showed no matter how hard he tried he couldn't suppress his quirk. But now he had a chance of getting further.

His project, something he had spent three years making and mastering was finished. A suit of armor designed partly for environmental isolation and partly for ergonomics looked back at him. Izuku didn't get overheated no matter how hot his surroundings, he had gotten used to dipping his hands in magma as a child after all. The suit would work to contain and insulate his heat from the outside world. Combine that with a custom made touch feedback system for his body to help handle things and retractable sections so he could expose his hands to work as needed. This would be his first trial run with it. A walk down from Mount Fuji into the surrounding area. He would work out any kinks when he got back. He touched the breastplate and smiled, he had burnished the front to a shine and could see his reflection. He had changed.

His eyes were still green but they glowed with inner fire in the low light, sparking with flickering embers. The green of his hair had retreated to his roots, his father and grandfather's red hair colored them to their ends, the curls looked a bit like cayenne peppers, a strange snack food his Grandfather had gotten to go along with his fascination with spicy cherries. Izuku favored them more than his grandfather, munching on them frequently when he worked. They were even better when dried out. More unusual though was the hard plate of grey keratin that covered a portion of his forehead which grew upwards into a pair of thin, ten centimeter long horns. Ornn claimed they had grown well and they would get bigger and thicker as he came into adulthood. Izuku wasn't sure if that was good or bad. And despite spending years in the dark, Izuku noted how his skin had turned tan, most likely from the heat of fires and the light cast by magma. "... Its time mother. I hope you recognize me."

Minutes later and one lava tube ride up and Izuku was walking the surface. Yet another odd feature of his quirk was his ability to shift between a molten liquid state and solid state at will. It wasn't easy though, he had spent many years practicing with Ornn's direction and infrequent assistance learning how. One thing which saved some headache was that whatever he crafted from his own molten secretions shifted with him instead of melting away. That and Magma Wyrm hide: the only magma retardant leather that exists. _No time to get distracted._ Izuku checked his suit, the thin, clear volcanic glass fixed as his facemask allowed him to see his surroundings. _Suit is in one piece, doesn't appear to be any leaks or stress points. And nothing is on fire. Good._ Izuku felt a small grin etch itself on his face. It had been a long time since he had been this happy.

Izuku had planned on keeping his surface visit short, a quick test to see if his suit did what it was supposed to in the short term. But his happiness and confidence pushed him to go further. _I've spent years working on this, apprenticed to the self proclaimed greatest of craftsmen in history. Lets see how far I can go on my own merit!_ The grin grew to a full blown smile as Izuku stared down from the slopes of the mountain. He was lucky as he had appeared on the slopes just below the snowline on a clear day. Early April was not a good time to go for a hike up Mount Fuji or down and whats more, Izuku was impatient to speak to people again. He looked below and saw far away buildings, a mix of what Izuku recognized as both modern and traditional. _Thats... Fujinomiya I think._ In another moment Izuku imagined a tube between where he stood and the outskirts of the town.

Moments later and a familiar out of body experience over and done with, Izuku emerged from a pool of lava on a hill overlooking the town. The buildings still looked small to his eyes even though he had gotten much closer. _Is it because I am bigger now, or because I always thought they'd be bigger?_ Izuku felt himself still as he pondered this. Not noticing the crowd of onlookers standing around him. Soon people were taking pictures of the odd being in what looked like an old western knight in plate mail who had emerged from a burning hole in the ground. One braved up and approached Izuku. "Excuse me, who are you? Where did you come from?" Izuku snapped out of his thoughts and turned to face the speaker, a young man about his age. Izuku studied him, _pale, skinny, dressed in loose clothes._ His eyes turned his surroundings and the crowd. _I'm surrounded._

Suddenly the thought of meeting people seemed... uncomfortable. _So many, all looking at me... Taking pictures... I... I don't like it._ "Please stop... taking pictures... its... I don't..." Izuku heard their voices, so many voices speaking at once from all directions. 'Who is he?' 'Is he dangerous?' 'I've never seen him in hero magazines.' 'He looks frightening with that horned helmet.' _Too many voices... I can't... no I'm not dangerous._ "I-I'm not... please stop..." Izuku started to feel sick, his senses overpowered by the unfamiliar masses. Deafened and overwhelmed by sight and sound. "Are you ok? You don't look good... Do you need to lie down? Better take that helmet off man, you don't seem to be breathing!" Izuku jerked as hands grasped at his helm. **"DON'T!"** Izuku had only meant to push the young man back but he hardly knew his strength. The teen yelped as he was lifted off the ground with a palm to his chest. He landed three meters away on his back. Izuku had all of a second to realize his mistake before the crowd got scared. 'He attacked that boy!' 'He's dangerous!' 'He's a villain!' 'Call the police! Tell them to get a hero over here!' 'Hello! There is a villain at our camping site!' Izuku didn't wait for them to finish their call. He muttered a quick apology before summoning a lava tube home.


	2. A lost Kid, a stubborn old Ram

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku attempts to learn how to socialize, makes some wild friends, makes a choice, and defies his Grandfather.

Izuku reappeared in a cavern close to the Hearth, he needed a moment to calm down. He became aware of his own hyperventilation. Something he hadn't suffered in years, shame mixed with anger at his failure. All these years and it never occurred to him that he knew almost nothing of the world, of how to handle crowds or navigate conversation. He hadn't had a great deal of practice at either. Ornn was as talkative as a hermit. If not for all the transcribed books wrought in steel he would hardly know his own written language or mathematics. Ornn hadn't neglected his practical education, perhaps expecting he'd leave one day. But he'd never prepared him for actually speaking to people. _What a first day._

**Meanwhile in Fujinomiya**

The police had taken statements, eye witness reports of the villainous teen wearing a burnished steel suit with horns and eerie green eyes glaring out of a smokey black facemask had begun circulation. Though no one was sure how he had escaped. 'He disappeared as he had disappeared! A ring of fire spat him out and it swallowed him back up!' 'I think it was a demon! We should get a priest out here!' 'I don't think he was dangerous, I think maybe he's trapped in the suit and someone is using him! He may need saving!' It would have surprised Izuku to know the boy he had accidentally assaulted had actually taken his side. Still the descriptions varied wildly, from a armored knights with metal horns on his helm to a silver demon. The only consistent points came from the photos and videos caught by the campers. That the individual looked to be about in their teens or was exceptionally short, wore a suit made of silver metal with metal horns adorning the helmet, and was extremely strong and could disappear into the ground through a flaming hole... the local heroes had no clue.

**Fast forward seven months**

In the intervening time Izuku did his best to catch up on what he was ignorant of. Taking hero magazines out of the local news vendors stock among other things. He rediscovered hero culture and found it... a bit much to be honest. Perhaps because the articles seemed so opinionated and sensational. Izuku had to wonder if people were really like this. Then he got a hold of a truly rare gift, friends.

Izuku had gotten better at making discrete visits to the outskirts of Fujinomiya. Sneaking through old campsites for any old news or information he could get. One day however, he got caught scrounging. On an empty park bench in a campsite Izuku snuck his way to it to investigate what looked like a new issue of Heroes Today. He was in luck, it was. It had started to pour over the cover's highlighted articles when a voice startled him. "So your the infamous silver demon haunting Fujinomiya." Izuku flinched and rounded on the voice. Staring at him was a flamboyantly dressed quartet of individuals. Three of them were women with one thickly muscled male standing just behind and staring him down. _Heroes, best to leave so no one gets hurt._ Izuku dropped the magazine and started channeling a lava tube home. "So you do make all those strange lava tubes that have been popping up everywhere. Well sorry, but your not going anywhere," cried one of the heroes before Izuku felt the earth beneath his feet shift. In moments his carefully formed lava tube had fractured and cooled after the earth shifted. A slight tremor rocked him and he realized he was in trouble. _One of them has an earth manipulation quirk._

_"Pixie-Bob, you keep him here. Tiger, if he gets violent, take him down. Ragdoll, tell us what we're dealing with."_ Mandalay's voice sounded in their heads. Ragdoll focused on the young man in the shiny suit. What she sensed made her pause. "He's a living volcano..." Everyone stared at Ragdoll hard, including the teen. Ragdoll shrugged before explaining, "The suit isn't meant to protect him from us, its to protect us from the tremendous heat he creates. He can create lava from his body. That's how he's able to make lava tubes to get around. Ergo, he's a living volcano. Oh and he's REALLY strong and has cute ram horns growing from his head. That's what the horns on his helmet are for." Then the teen spoke in a distorted voice, "thats all true." Mandalay turned back to the teen, the glowing green eyes staring back.

"Can you take it off," Mandalay asked. The teen shook his head, "not unless you can withstand temperatures that exceed the melting point of steel. I don't suffer from the heat but it gets so bad that things around me catch fire by proximity." Mandalay started to feel they weren't dealing with a reclusive villain and more a self exiled hermit of a teen. "Whats your name young man?" He tensed for a moment, seeming to debate telling or not. "Midoriya Izuku." Mandalay smiled, this was a good start to rescuing a lost boy. _"Okay, lets all relax a little. I think this one's a rescue."_ Mandalay felt the tension ease around her and Midoriya seemed to join in the deescalation. "Any chance we could sit down and talk?" Mandalay indicated the park bench behind Midoriya. He slowly turned to inspect the bench before turning back and slowly nodding.

Mandalay indicated to Midoriya to seat himself first. He was slow to do so, he started by inspecting the park bench before making a few experimental taps on the wood. He looked back before stepping around and seating himself on the opposite side. Mandalay started forward when Midoriya raised his hand as if to say ' _stay there_ ' for about five seconds before waving her on. She sat facing Midoriya with Tiger leaning on the table, Pixie-Bob sitting beside her, and Ragdoll taking the seat beside Midoriya with a big grin. Midoriya in turn slowly slide away from her. "Please don't get too close. I don't know how well my suit handles insulation. You may suffer burns from physical contact." He spoke this so matter-of-factually but Ragdoll just blinked and smiled harder. "Don't worry, your armor is amazing. I don't feel a thing and I could probably touch your chest and feel nothing." Midoriya was silent as he stared at Ragdoll for a moment before looking at his armored form. He looked back up before simply saying, "thank you."

Izuku had never received such a bold compliment to his work. Ornn had certainly never been so emphatic in his praise. He decided he liked the hero with the big eyes. _I should ask their names._ As if reading his mind the one with brown hair and the nominal leader spoke up, "I'm Mandalay, this is Pixie Bob, Tiger, and Ragdoll. We are the Wild, Wild Pussycats.' Mandalay pointed as she named her partners. "We specialize in rescue work as heroes. Though after seven months of you popping up and stealing things and scaring the community they called on us to catch you." Izuku found himself confused. _Stealing?_ "I didn't steal anything. People leave these things all over the place. If no one wants it, its not stealing." Mandalay shook her head before responding, "then what about the ones you stole from the news vendors without paying?" Izuku frowned as he thought who that could be. Ragdoll sighed, "He doesn't understand Mandalay. Utterly confused. Poor kitten, who's kept you locked away so long you don't know a thing about the world?" Izuku looked at Ragdoll, "My Grandfather has raised me since my quirk manifested nine years ago... I burnt my house down... my mother... wasn't fire proof like me... and I didn't see her outside our home before grandfather took me away." The words brought tears to his eyes.

The temperature at the table dipped below zero. Every one of the pussycats present couldn't help the looks of horror and sympathy for Midoriya. They knew what his quirk was and they knew that when quirks first manifest they can be dangerous. But what happened to this child... "Where do you live, Midoriya?" Mandalay tried to keep the ball rolling after that slip. "I live with my grandfather in the Hearth. A forge that sits atop a spire he fashioned in the core of Mount Fuji. He did it to pool all the deep strata magma that flows there for use in the forge." And like that, things only got worse. "You live... inside an active volcano?" Midoriya nodded before answering, "he has cared and taught me for nine years there. I learned how to forge and craft from him as well as a number of abilities from him. His quirk and mine are about the same. I've wanted to leave for some time but I only completed this suit seven months ago."

Pieces were starting to fall into place now. Midoriya had lived utterly isolated from society _inside a volcano_ with his _quite possibly_ reclusive grandfather for most of his life and his previous experience outside was as a young child, who had suffered a terrible loss thanks to his quirk. It seemed quite likely that he was traumatized as well as outside of whatever his grandfather had taught him, he had far less education than the average teenager living in japan let alone a developed country. He avoided people because his quirk had cost the life of his mother and had never spoken to another person besides his grandfather... Mandalay hated to think it, but he seemed pretty balanced considering. _Doesn't mean he doesn't have a plethora of issues though._

"Midoriya... considering your situation... I think the petty theft and previous incident of assault can be dropped considering the circumstances. But you have to come with us and talk to people about this. The police, child services, you haven't even attended school have you?" Midoriya shook his head again, "I haven't been outside of a volcanic environment for nine years Ms. Mandalay. Sometimes my grandfather would take me to other volcanoes to help him." This time Pixie-Bob spoke up, "help him with what exactly?" Izuku glanced at her before giving a shrug, "its kind of repetitive now. I help him redirect magma and plates so that active eruptions and lava breaches occur in areas with little to no population or otherwise help grow new landmasses by getting eruptions to occur. Doing so helps prevent eruptions at volcanoes in populated areas and someday in the future those volcanoes we reshaped will become the basis for new landmasses." The table went silent again at the implications.

Tiger spoke up this time, "You... with your grandfather... stop eruptions in populated areas?" Izuku quickly started shaking his head with a bark of laughter, "its impossible to stop an eruption. If its going to happen it will happen and nothing can stop it at that point. You'd also do more harm trying to stop it. We prevent eruptions from occurring by shaping and redirecting magma channels away from volcanoes like Mount Fuji and to others that exist out in the sea or a volcanic island that living things can't live on yet. Its like redirecting a portion of a river that floods it banks so people don't get washed away, proactive instead of reactive." ' _He may not have a public education but I don't think Midoriya is lacking in intelligence or some measure of education'_ Mandalay messaged to the others. "Do you have any more questions for me?" Midoriya looked between them all and waited.

Izuku spent the rest of the day with the Wild Pussycats, talking to the police. Taking a quick picture for their records, with the helmet off. He was able to manage not destroying it but he did set off the fire alarm. He had found the cold water spraying him surprisingly refreshing after a life of bathing in magma. From there he spent a night in police custody until child services could reach out. The Pussycats offered to stay with him which he accepted. Spending the time learning as much about social customs and the world as he could. Much to the Pussycat's surprise he was more socially savy than his story led them to believe. The trouble was he didn't know or understand things like jokes, sarcasm, irony, lying, and while he could talk for a long time. It was often curt and to the point. He also had great difficulty with explaining his emotions. Grandfather Ornn hadn't been very touchy feely.

Mandalay watched from the observation room of the police office as a psychiatrist went to work on Midoriya. He had been sent ahead by child services to evaluate Midoriya's mental state and if he had suffered trauma through his isolation. The verdict was not what Mandalay wanted to hear. "He's both emotionally and socially stunted. His grandfather didn't give him enough social interaction and even seemed to go out of his way to suppress Midoriya's emotional responses. Its at its worst when it comes to empathy." Mandalay nodded as she remembered the empathy trials. The trial on the parental instruction vs. sympathy for another. Midoriya had passed the hurt child by without a second thought and when prompted explained: "Life is full of hardship, that child will grow stronger from his injury. He doesn't need my help, he needs to help himself." It wasn't that he operated at the Preoperational Stage of child development, he operated on a unsympathetic level with suffering of others. More often reluctant to help without personal motivation or compensation. Speaking of compensation, he did understand currency, he's just never used it. That was a problem in itself, one word: gullible.

"I don't have much hope for his educational test. They'll be here in an hour, I've recommended they set the test bar low." Mandalay was of mixed opinion of that but she said nothing. And two hours later... Midoriya was still going. He had passed all levels on elementary education from reading and writing comprehension, to math, to history, and even his English was incredibly good. Another hour and Midoriya was into middle school levels of education. Here his limits were starting to be found, history coverage was not comprehensive in regards to japanese history or world history. He knew the important points but the more subtle things he had no comprehension. His English repertoire was par for the course but he would benefit from more in school. But math and writing was still going strong. One more hour later and Midoriya had finished... reading and writing had stopped at honors for middle school and high marks for high school but math and in particular his understanding of the sciences had gone beyond. "His mathematics and science comprehension... goes beyond high school level. Whatever his grandfather was teaching him in 'Mount Fuji' goes to college level, which I don't have tests for. All told though... his education would most likely meet state levels for his age. He should probably take a middle school exam and apply to a high school as soon as possible."

**The next day**

"Midoriya, I never thought to ask... why have you come back?" Mandalay was sitting with Midoriya in a conference room at Fujinomiya Middle School. They had requested that Midoriya receive an early Final Exam for the Middle School level. The timing wasn't perfect but his initial testing from child services had been forwarded and had garnered a good deal of attention. "I'll answer your question if you answer mine first." Mandalay looked at Midoriya. In the days she had gotten to know him it was rare for Midoriya to be so elusive with an answer. "Alright, ask away." Izuku paused for a moment, "Why are you all here helping me?" Mandalay blinked and looked at the others sitting with them. She supposed the others could be out doing hero work... but they were a team... and - "Since we met you Midoriya, you have needed our help." Izuku shook his head, "I could have done this without you. I may not be socially adept, but my education and cognitive ability is sufficient. I have done far harder tasks on my own. My grandfather trusts me to look after myself." Mandalay could only frown in sadness at his cool response, she had thought they had made some progress with him. "But... considering I would probably still be out stealing old magazines and discarded junk without your intervention... thank you... for your help." _Suppose we helped him after all._

Izuku hadn't spoken about his reasons for leaving the Hearth for anyone living for years. The memory of his mother had been the only thing he had confided in. It should have been easy to speak about, but when he tried he couldn't find the words. Three false starts and and a fourth try later, "As a child, more than anything in the world. I wanted to be a hero. My mother and I would play pretend, I'd rescue her from some make-believe danger... she never got to see my quirk... I don't know if she's alive or dead. But I know I've got to find out what happened. And while my quirk is too dangerous to use as a hero, my grandfather taught me nearly everything he knows about forging and the many disciplines of craftsmanship. I think I can be a good support item craftsman."

Mandalay was quiet, a heavy burden on her mind. The police had found Midoriya's file, dating back to that night. Inko hadn't made it out of the apartment. She had been dead for nine years. Before she could decide on telling Midoriya, a school faculty member came and told Midoriya he could participate in the exam. A lucky break for someone who had lived outside the school system for so long. She didn't want to risk upsetting Midoriya before this new breakthrough. She'd think on it, tell him after... maybe. She wished Midoriya good luck and waited. He passed. She told him that evening. He cried for a long time.

** Two days later **

Izuku hadn't been back to Mount Fuji for days. Ornn had likely noticed his absence. He didn't know how he would react. He walked the southern bridge to the Hearth. The forges were still lit, nothing appeared damaged. That didn't mean he wouldn't be angry. He stepped into the roofed plaza that made up the space, made to keep falling debris from the magma falls from littering the Hearth. Then he heard it. A low ringing. Ornn was busy shaping something. He followed the sound.

He found Ornn in his favorite space, standing in front of his ancestral forge column, the ancient brick iron smelter adorned with a stone ram's head. Steadily hammering away at a sword he'd been toiling on for as long as Izuku could remember. The sword was a distraction piece. Ornn had pounded, shaped, reforged, repounded, reshaped, nearly ten thousand times. It was simple in design and it never met Ornn's standard. Too many of Ornn's works had gone that way lately. Izuku finally understood why. "Hello Grandfather." Ornn didn't respond, didn't speak, or grunt, or even acknowledge him. Izuku cleared his throat and tried again. Ornn paused in his work, finally turning to look at him. "So that's what you were working on for so long. Passable, lacks articulation in the chest so getting up quickly will be harder." Having passed his judgement Ornn resumed working on the sword. "You never told me she had died." Ornn stopped mid swing. "... No."

"Why not? Why leave me wondering about her? Why save that heartbreak for later?" Ornn sighed, "Sometimes forgetting is easier." Ornn's words weren't helping Izuku's mood. He had been harboring dark emotions ever since Mandalay told him two days ago. "I didn't. You know I didn't. Why didn't you tell me?" Ornn grunted in response. "I always dreamed of mastering my quirk and finding her one day. One day when it was safe for me to do so. But I never did so. So I had to get creative. 'Make my own solution' as you taught me." Ornn didn't respond, he sat there as immovable as stone. "But I have another dream. In her memory, I will become the greatest hero support equipment designer in history. I'm here for my things. Goodbye Grandfather." Izuku started to turn when a growl like a shifting lithosphere plate sounded. "[No](https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/leagueoflegends/images/4/43/Ornn_121.ogg/revision/latest?cb=20171213110532)." Izuku looked back at Ornn.

Ornn was now standing his full two meter height and staring Izuku down. "No grandson of mine is going to waste his talent making baubles, trinkets, and crutches for those narcissistic fools in clown suits." Izuku felt himself stare back and match Ornn in his stance. "That's not for you to choose anymore. I have a right to pursuing my own course in life. I met with Japanese Child Services. They said my isolation is grounds for separation from you. And frankly, I've decided I no longer need your tutelage." Ornn didn't speak, he didn't move, he hardly blinked. His breathes were deep and hard. Izuku matched him. In the end though, Ornn looked away first. Izuku was surprised, he had expected a fight with his Grandfather. "Fine, go then." Izuku watched his grandfather return to his anvil and the sword he had been working on. The more Izuku looked, the more it seemed he had actually won. 


	3. In pursuit of a dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Power Loader receives a very late application with an unusual sponsor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Update: I made an edit for Ornn. It ties the sad elements of Ornn's lore from League (how he lost everyone he cared about to rage) and it feels like a much better cliffhanger for this chapter and hints at the future.

** Two months later **

Maijima Higari, also known as Power Loader, considered himself a fairly patient man. He also considered himself very open minded, but the late entry he discovered in his mailbox for entry to the Support Department Classes that he discovered seemed like a joke. He pulled up the name and found it wasn't in the system. No school had a Midoriya Izuku registered with them for UA. On top of this the diagram attached for the practical evaluation described a heat insulating suit with so many bells and whistles _and_ was apparently made with _ancient_ techniques and a horde of volcanic materials including but not limited to: Volcanic Glass sculpted into a facemask for the helmet, an insulation layer made of carefully cut and segmented sections of basalt rock, and handforged titanium... _hand... forged... And there was leather from a 'Magma Wyrm' in use as well!_

He sighed as he looked over the dimensions. With how much had to be packed to achieve the _ludicrous_ amounts of insulation, the teen figure inside was buried in material. Yet somehow he was supposed to be able to move around with it on and be able to work with tools just fine. This was too much, all way too much. The clincher was that this came with the commendation of the Wild Wild Pussycats. Well this wasn't going to go unpunished by Maijima, this was going too far. Maijima sought out No. 13, a fellow teacher and Rescue Hero. If anyone would know how to contact them, it would be them.

In the end it was a phone call to Sokasi Shino, or Mandalay, the nominal leader. Maijima sat in his office waiting for Sokasi to answer, he had heard from No. 13 that the Pussycats were on leave to help an extreme rescue case adjust. Maijima heard a click followed by a cheerful woman's voice great him and ask how they may assist him. "Hello, is this Sokasi Shino?" A quick giggle sounded before the speaker responded, "No, this is Shiriotoko Tomoko, I'm Ragdoll. I'm here sitting the kittens for Mandalay while she is out. Can I take a message?" Maijima thought on what he wanted to say before replying, "Well, this affects you too so... I received some kind of prank application for the Support Department Course at UA High. The individual used your signatures, the whole of the Wild Wild Pussycat Hero team, as recommendations for their application." There was a quick gasp on the line and Maijima sensed that this might get emotional. "Midoriya! Power Loader got your application, but he thinks its a prank! Did you send the right diagram?" Maijima's mind lagged behind as he switched from sympathy to dumbstruck. 

He heard a voice respond over the line but couldn't make out the words. "A prank is like when you lie to someone for the sake of humor, or to surprise them. Its supposed to be funny... Hey now, that was rude Midoriya, I'm certain Mr. Maijima is not a utter fool... well I'm sure there is a reason... Mr. Maijima can you please explain the issue you are having?" Maijima felt himself start fidgeting with a nut and bolt he kept in his pocket. "I now have several... Lets start with the easiest to clarify: Midoriya Izuku is a real person?" Maijima heard Shiriotoko make a sound like a cat would make with a hint of human confusion, "As real as the fact a cat always lands on their feet." Maijima paused, _13 was right right when they said their names were more than just a moniker._

"He doesn't appear in any school registry for his listed age and grade." A _'myrraaah'_ came across the line after a moment of silence, "Its probably accurate to say he had a very unconventional upbringing and home-schooling. His quirk was... difficult for him to manage until he finished his special suit. This left him trapped in his old home for years." Maijima nodded, looking back over the diagram, the suit was intended for insulation of extreme heat. If Midoriya couldn't manage his heat quirk safely then staying in a specially made home envirornment was his only recourse. "That still doesn't explain some of the... listed materials used in its manufacture. And if I'm reading this right, its supposed to achieve containment of temperatures in excess of 700 degrees centigrade... that means he generates heat on par to melt rock if I'm not mistaken." "You are not mistaken. My suit achieves perfect insulation through a lamellar design comprising an internal layer of Magma Wyrm leather, basalt rock segments making up the separation layer, another layer of Wyrm leather, and finally the Titanium Frame. Are any of these details missing from my diagram Mr. Maijima?" Maijima jerked as he realized the unnaturally deep and distorted voice he was hearing was real and addressing him. "I presume I'm speaking with Mr. Midoriya?" A grunt sounded over the phone which Majima took for a yes.

Maijima inspected the diagram again. The details were rough but the notes were there. "Mr. Midoriya... forgive me but I have trouble believing all of this. Your quirk would make you a walking furnace and the materials used to insulate you would weigh a metric ton and cost a fortune in exotic materials." Another grunt, more like scorn and disapproval. "I made precise measurements to ensure no waste in their forging and manufacture. All materials are at far denser levels yes, but that saves more weight, space, and relative material than less efficient forging methods, of which I have witnessed many in my time above ground! So many of these "trains and cars" would be more efficient and have greater material longevity if more care was taken in their manufacture. My Grandfather was right about how lazy the craftsmen on the surface can be." Maijima had listened with growing concern for Midoriya's sanity while he heard a increasingly nervous Shiriotoko attempt to interrupt Midoriya's mad rant.

After a moment of silence Maijima heard a deep sigh that sounded eerily like a pressure release value blowing. "I had faith my diagrams were clear but perhaps my Grandfather's wisdom is true: 'Let your work speak for you,' so I will do just that. Prepare for my arrival." Maijima felt himself raise an eyebrow at this boy's sheer impertinence. That changed when he heard Shiriotoko start panicking. "Midoriya wait! You can't barge into UA High! There are rules and a defense system! You can't just- Oh no... _PIXIE-BOB HELP! HE DID THE LAVA TUBE THING!"_ Maijima heard the end of Shiriotoko's words fade as she seemed to run somewhere looking for her parter Pixie-Bob... Maijima had a bad feeling.

That feeling was justified when the proximity alarm went off a minute later. He had been talking with Shiriotoko and her partner Pixie-Bob, who had been watching someone else in the house. In the short time they had Maijima was given a frightening image of Midoriya and his situation. A person who had accidently killed his mother in a fire created by the activation of his quirk which made him uncontrollably generate massive amounts of heat and even create molten material from his own body by consuming other materials. For nine years he had leaved alone with an anti-social grandfather, no others and no time outside their home. Which turned out to be a hollow inside the bowels of Mt. Fuji! He had poor grasp of social norms and was literal minded, obstinate beyond reason, and often spoke his opinions aloud at others which often caused altercations. He also could travel by creating small controlled channels of active magma between a starting point and a target location. He had just put that into context with what happened earlier when the alarm sounded.

Maijima quickly pulled up his computer and- "Shit! He's at the gate. Its currently trying to repel him with an energy discharge! He isn't budging... he's... pushing through it!" Then Midoriya cleared the field through sheer force, overloading a number of energy emitters as he passed. He didn't even stop to inspect the damage, instead he kept going. "Ragdoll, Pixie-Bob! I need to go. I'm the only one who knows whats going on and I don't want this kid to ruin his chances any more than he has! I'll try and get clearance for you when you get here but I need to hang up!" Maijima didn't wait for a reply, he hit end and bolted.

_Barrier was quite strong, enough to surprise me. A good sign despite Maijima's lack of trust in my notes. Now to find him._ Midoriya scanned the campus grounds, noting the large space that didn't appear to be good for any practical use. _So much ground left to grass and trees, the trees don't look ready for harvesting either. Too young. Cobblestone is neat though, passable._ Then Midoriya saw several individuals approach at a run. Midoriya moved to meet them. "Stay where you are!" Midoriya had heard those words before. Often when he had done something to earn the ire of his new caretakers and teachers. Midoriya did not know these people, but it was likely they were heroes going by their dress. "I'm looking for Maijima Higari. He insulted me by insinuating the diagram of my suit and its existence were fictitious. I am here to let my work speak on my behalf." The heroes arrayed out before him. Two in front and two behind in a V pattern. Those in front took up stances that spoke of physical violence. The two behind stood more loosely. _A test set by Maijima? Very well then._ Izuku felt himself lower into a charge and build speed.

Maijima rushed for the security office, right now Principal Nedzu would be inside watching the fight and preparing to call for aide. He had to get there call for a stand down before this got bad. He hoped as much as he could that Midoriya might have the sense not to escalate this any more than he had. He ran and then he was there at the door. He hammered his security password into the keypad as fast as he could, fumbling once with a curse. Then the light went green and he waited for a painful three seconds for the door to make way on its own. Trying to force a pneumatic pressure door was counter-productive anyhow. "Wait, stop! Don't antagonize him! Please tell me I got here in time!" Principal Nedzu and No. 13 turned in surprise at his panicked arrival. "Higari? What's wrong?" 13 moved to help him in while Nedzu went back to watching the moniters, Higari flinched in fear before looking himself. It was worse than he imagined.

Izuku charged through another barrier, smashing the concrete with a frightening ease. His attempts to come to blows with at least one of them was being frustrated at every turn. The large grey man seemed to be their most physically imposing but he kept putting up barriers and traps of cement. They had attempted to slow him with a layer of barriers before attempting to entrap him but quick uses of lava manipulation melted their trap. The others had since tried a number of tactics to halt him. One of them had grabbed him by the head with a thick scarf to blind him before coming in for an attack. Izuku's armor had withstood the blows, even those aimed at gaps in the titanium. Izuku had tried to tolerate fighting blind but found it impossible to predict and counter his attacker without his vision. _I am loathe to destroy your own tools over a test but you leave me no choice._ With a careful application of pressure to a mechanical release mechanism, his gauntlets shifted and suddenly gaps in his gloves permitted heat and molten secretions to escape from his hands.

Aizawa heard a pair of clicks and then felt an explosion of heat. He had been attempting to strike at weak points to weaken the intruder, maybe even get him off balance. That changed when the figure reacher up with the hands and red liquid jettisoned from new gaps in the segmented metal gloves. Aizawa backed away quickly and was concerned to see his capture weapon catch fire when it came in contact with the liquid. In moments it had eaten through several layers of his capture weapon tied around the figures head. Fire and liquid blazing together as the molten liquid destroyed it. But such a move had to be risky for the user. His armor would likely be compromised. "Everyone get clear. Midnight!" No more words were needed. He, Yamada, and Ishiyama all moved away from their opponent while Midnight got as close as she dared to the blaze. As Aizawa retreated he felt his face was raw from the heat he had bathed in. After putting a few meters distance he turned to watch the results. Midnight tore a hole in the clothes on her arm and saw pink vapor escape and _blow up and back_ from the figure! _He's creating enough heat to create a pressure wave of air._ Then the last of Aizawa's capture weapon fell away in cinders while the liquid metal fell away to the ground, sliding down the figures body like water. His silver armor showed no signs of heating or damage. Then the figure leveled into a charge again.

Mandalay was terrified when she got the call. She had rushed home in an express cab with Tiger. They agreed on the drive there that he would stay and babysit Kota. "You didn't try to stop him?" "He wasn't listening! You know how he gets when he sets himself to do something! I mean we still haven't convinced him to try meeting with the therapist after the first time!" Mandalay shuttered as she remembered the first time they had taken Midoriya to see a therapist. Midoriya had introduced himself and the therapist had answered Midoriya's question as to what the purpose of their meeting was. Midoriya had proceeded to grill the therapist's knowledge of craftsman's skills and when the closest they had gotten was her barely passing a woodshop class Midoriya had stood up and left the room in disgust. _"I am never meeting with that woman again. A person who can barely work a saw is not worth my time."_ The second attempt had ended before it began when Midoriya 'gifted' the therapist with a set of wood working tools he had made from stones and lava he had fashioned into tools and the accompanying words: _"when you have learned the basics of using these, I will inspect your work and judge them. Your welcome."_ Then he did an about face and started to leave. The third attempt... Midoriya was furious when the therapist told him she had given the tools away.

"At least tell me the school is aware and hasn't antagonized him." The silence and looks exchanged did not bode well. The express ride up to the school was very uncomfortable. No one was answering their calls as they went straight to 'line busy' tones. As they took the hill Pixie-Bob shifted in her seat. She was wearing her goggles, allowing her sensory information over the earth. "Nothing yet, but that doesn't mean there hasn't been conflict." Implication aside Mandalay knew there would be trouble. Midoriya's mentality was bound to cause conflict. Just how bad it would be... she tried not to imagine. When the taxi hit the apex of the hill and she could see smoke rising from the gate did it dawn on her that this was entering truly horrific.

Izuku was panting hard. _Credit is due, their strategy worked._ Izuku was currently trapped in a near full body cast block of cement. He had been trying to get to grips with the two fighters he now realized were the warriors. The man and woman had worked well, when Izuku turned to fight one, the other struck. Their blows had been knat bites but he couldn't stand and wait for them to come his way or else get assaulted by the one with the voice attack. Izuku wasn't sure if his voice was a mental attack, a physical one, most likely both considering he had been droning at him to surrender. Finally pushed to exhaustion and with his heat building to dangerous and suit compromising levels Izuku had been forced to perform a mass vent. Popping most of the hard seals on his suit in an effort to vent the build-up of heat. But such a rapid cooldown had two effects, it finally created a pressure difference that pulled in Midnight's somnambulist vapors. Secondly the rapid cooldown taxed his stamina. Midoriya had learned that the heat he produced affected his energy levels, rapid cooling caused him to become lethargic. Izuku knew he would feel tired by venting but the sensation of actually drifting asleep made him realize the woman's quirk, the vapor she produced, was a sleep inducing one. Midoriya risked as much exposure as he could before shutting his vents again. Tens seconds of exposure. That he wasn't asleep was partial proof of his incredible stamina. The real damage was the continued lethargy he experienced. His movements became drunken, he still had incredible power and mass behind him but now his speed, reactions, and concentration were all greatly diminished. As for the vapor, exposure to a molten vacuum burned off the vapors outside his body and in his suit but what was in his body was working overtime to knock him out.

Aizawa and the other teachers had pulled back, Midnight staying as close as she could to take advantage. When the vents closed again the heroes all hoped the fight was all but over. Part way through the fight they had learned they were dealing with a damaged teen who had broken the rules over a misunderstanding they were less than thrilled. On the one hand this teen seemed to be fighting them no holds bared and giving them all a real challenge. On the other hand if they had been more tactful this may not have happened. When the rogue teen stood again on shaky legs they all felt a little frustrated. Aizawa grit his teeth, Midnight cringed, Cementoss sighed, and Yamada bridged his nose with a groan. But it didn't last, two drunken charges into walls followed by a successful incasement later and Izuku seemed to have run out of steam. "A grand performance. Thank you, you did well." Perhaps the comment was meant as a kindness but every teacher seethed with indignation at the words. "I hope to god you aren't in my homeroom. Because I will expel you the moment you walk in the door." And with that Aizawa fell on his rear and wheezed while covered in sweat. "Goddamn problem child."

**Twenty minutes later**

**Principal Nedzu's Office**

Nedzu had heard a portion of Midoriya's story from Higari during the brawl. Learning the whole of it from Sokasi had been far more enlightening. He now felt a great deal more sympathy and patience for him. Nedzu had a great of experience on the harm of isolation. Adjusting to the world outside the cage had been as great a challenge as escaping in the first place, both physically and mentally. He could also see the damage Midoriya had suffered. He would often ask questions about gestures, slang, behavior, thing which normal people could identify, relate, understand, and habituate. Midoriya was so confused by such things that he felt compelled to ask and often request elaboration to things normal people found too mundane to really explain. He truly could sympathize.

Yet despite the recent conflict and lecturing Midoriya had stood through it all standing in a form of attention rather than be showing signs of exhaustion or even losing consciousness. Even more surprising was when the teachers asked if Midoriya had anything to say for himself, he apologized for intruding and unintentionally starting a fight with the staff... " _it was a better test of myself and my armor than I could have hoped for."_ All three Wild Pussycats flinched before each reacted. Mandalay grimaced, Ragdoll made a high pitched sound akin to a squeak, and Pixie-Bob grabbed the back of Midoriya's head before muttering out: "Thats not an appropriate response Midoriya..." while trying in vain to force Midoriya into a bow.

Every one of the staff present had their own reaction. Aizawa's glare was caustic, Cementoss stifled a cough, Yamada made a noise like something between a _hunh_ and a screech. Midnight and Power Loader both sighed and shook their heads for different reasons. 13 started stuttering in disbelief. Nedzu's careful neutral face was pulled into a frown. No one was happy with this response, it was clear Midoriya felt little to no actual remorse for his actions. "Now that I am aware of the fact that I need to schedule a time for such trials, I will make such appointments in the future. I will continue to improve myself." Midoriya finally bowed albeit only a slight bow of the chest. Everyone sighed, Nedzu being the first to speak. "At least something was learned from this... as for your application Mr. Midoriya. I'm afraid your actions and behavior have destroyed any chance of acceptance. As impressive as you and your armor are, this school has very high standards and low tolerance for so serious an incident as this. Midoriya rose up again and attempted to address Nedzu when he suddenly flinched at Mandalay's sudden movement. Maijima had learned Mandalay had the ability to project her voice into another's mind. He could only imagine the mental lashing she had just given Midoriya to make him flinch into silence before his mouth got him into more trouble. A pause and Midoriya resumed his bow, "I understand... but I implore you to-" 

"You do not get to implore, you should be grateful we are dropping the matter and accept it." Aizawa low voice cut across Midoriya. Of all of them he had the least patience. "The illegal entry, breaking school property, assaulting staff, quirk use without a license! You have broken many rules that would cause immense punishment under normal circumstances." For once Midoriya appeared to be taking an emotional hit, he had started visibly shaking. Aizawa relented and seemed content to let Midoriya stew in his newfound regret. "Then perhaps UA is not the school I thought it was." No one was prepared for the anger in Midoriya's voice. Before anyone could speak, Midoriya rose back to full height before placing his hands to several points on his helmet. With a series of clicks Midoriya released all the latches and seals connecting and sealing his helmet to the gorget on his armored chest. A sound like another seal pressurizing and taking the place of his helmet sounded for a second before his helmet came away with a deep hiss. The temperature of the room rose.

Izuku tucked his helmet into the crook of his left arm and looked out at the assembled teachers. He felt his hair curl up and strands catch fire in the air. He could feel all eyes on him, on his horns. He knew they blazed red in the runic cuts that ran their length. He had found a mirror while exploring Mandalay's house. He saw his reflection, the darkness of his volcanic glass mask hiding his features, the glowing green eyes being the sole noteable part of his appearance outside his armor. He had flinched on sight, before realizing he was looking at himself as he flexed his body. _Is that me? I look so frightening..._ He had removed his helmet to see himself. He did not like the cold face staring back at him, crowned with horns and small flames. "When I was a child, before my quirk manifested, UA High was the hero school I wanted to attend. It was the greatest hero school in the world, 'there I will become a great hero. Perhaps the greatest someday.' Thats what I told myself in my excitement. After the fire, the day I lost my mother. I was so scared of my quirk. I hated myself for years. Hiding in a volcano like a monster. My Grandfather taught me a measure of control but my dream changed with reality. 'I'll never be a hero, I'm too dangerous. But maybe I can still do good. Maybe UA knows things my Grandfather does not. Maybe they can teach me to master my quirk. Maybe one day I can walk on the world and not set it on fire.' I chose UA because surely the wisest and most patient of teachers are here. I was wrong. I made one mistake and you dismiss me as a threat. I made countless mistakes under the tutelage of my Grandfather and as hard as he was he never gave up on me. I don't resent living with him or what he taught me. I resent what he couldn't teach me. Maybe I was wrong to leave home for a dream." Midoriya didn't wait to hear anyone's response as he moved to leave. He was too angry and embarrassed. He hadn't been this emotional since his early days with his grandfather. Yet despite his anger his temperature had never risen. Through it all he had pushed himself to stay in control. He didn't trust himself to stay that way and quickly resealed his helmet.

Everyone watched him go, Ragdoll put out a hand to stop Mandalay and Pixie-Bob, "You'll do no good talking to him now. Let him have space. He hasn't gone further than ten steps. He's staring out the window at the horizon... watching the sun set. His tears are evaporating before they can fall." The three Pussycats turned back to the assembled teachers and bowed deeply. "We apologize for Midoriya. For what happened today. We thank you for your understanding of his situation. We promise we will do as much as we can to help Midoriya adjust to life here and settle." Mandalay was fighting hard with her emotions. On a personal level she had never realized what UA had truly meant to Midoriya, but he had irreversibly sabotaged himself. There was no fixing this. One high pitched _hmmmm_ drew everyone's attention. Aizawa was the first to react. "No. No, a thousand times no! He attacked school staff! Without provocation! Do not even _think_ about giving him a pass!" But Nedzu was frowning when he met Aizawa. "Its clear to me that this child has suffered greatly for his isolation. Our school may be the best place for him! We now understand his situation and he was very clear on his reasons and now its clear he feels deep regret for his actions." Aizawa didn't budge, "Did you clearly hear him? He wasn't regretful. He was angry. He throws a tantrum and he gets a free pass?" Nedzu shook his head, "He wasn't angry at us. He was angry with himself. ' **I** was wrong. **I** made a mistake. **I** resent what he couldn't teach me. Maybe **I** was wrong to leave home for a dream.' Its all about his own mistakes. How one mistake cost him his dream: to learn mastery over his quirk and control it. Not let it control him. He is trapped by what he is and he feels powerless to master it on his own. We can do more than just teach him how to use his quirk. We can teach him that he doesn't need to fix every problem and every flaw he has. This school is more than just its reputation or its adherence to the rules. I also believe it would be more harmful to leave him to self-flagellate. If he falls into despair, there is no telling who he might meet in so dark a place." Everyone stared at Nedzu with a variety of responses. Aizawa was far from pleased but he relented, understanding Nedzu argument. The Pussycats all looked astonished and varying levels of hopeful. 13 and Cementoss found themselves in calm agreement as they thought on Nedzu's words. Maijima was silent, but inside he was relieved. He had failed Midoriya already he wanted this second chance. Of all of them, Yamada was the least happy, "We seriously going to turn the blind eye to this? What about the public? How the hell are they gonna respond to this?" Nedzu's face switched from good natured teacher to manic mastermind in a flash. "I have a story in the works, don't worry. Besides the school year hasn't started yet, no one was looking at us too closely to worry."

** One hour and a half later **

Izuku stood in the thermal testing chamber, a space normally designed for use in stress testing support equipment by subjecting them to high induction heat. A quick modification to the system to read temperature without the heating system being active and Maijima gave Midoriya a thumbs-up. "That means go Midoriya." Maijima looked up at Mandalay who looked exhausted. Maijima was far from feeling fresh himself but he was eager to give Midoriya a full battery of tests to see his limits. When Midoriya was let back into the Principal's Office and told his argument had been sound and moved them into giving him another chance on the condition of total adherence to school rules, they hadn't needed Ragdoll to tell them he was crying. He had whole heatedly agreed between relieved sobs and a groveling bow on the floor. The majority of the time had been discussing matters of requirements, adjustments, and a general agreement that he and Aizawa were to have as little contact as possible. Midoriya asked about this particular stipulation with concern, asking if it was because he had destroyed Aizawa's capture weapon in the 'misunderstanding' they had. Everyone decided that it was probably best to say that was a major cause. Midoriya accepted it at face value and offered to make a replacement as an apology, Aizawa stiffly declined.

Right now though, Maijima had wanted an idea of just how hot Midoriya could run. The thermal testing chamber was rated for molten conditions in case of "major system failures" so they were reasonably confident that Midoriya would be fine cutting loose. So Midoriya, with the go ahead, released as much of his armor from his body as he could. He had admited there wasn't enough room or reason for an underlayer to his armor so he kept his waist armor, but the rest he removed. Already the temperature spiked up to 600 degrees centigrade. "Midoriya, you told me you can produce molten 'secretions' from your body correct?" Midoriya grunted and nodded his head. "At what temperature?" Midoriya seemed to catch the hint and quickly the temperature rose again to 800 degrees centigrade. At that point his body went from being a healthy brown with little flames making circlet in his hair, to his body starting to glow a dull red, droplets of molten material dripping from his hands, and the little fires on his head gathering into ten centimeter tall spires linking and forming a ring that met the sides of his horns. Midoriya held this temperature for several seconds before dropping below 600 again. "What happened Midoriya?" This time he answered, "Thats as high as I can go before I compromise my armor as it currently is. Fully suited and enmeshed I can go higher but with the sections exposed I run the risk of damaging it. I'd need to go back to Mt. Fuji to repair such damage." Maijima shrugged to himself before asking, "So? From what I hear you travel faster than the bullet trains with that lava tube travel you do. Shouldn't too hard to visit." Midoriya frowned and looked away. "I had a fight with my Grandfather, not a sparring match, a... an argument about not telling me about my mother... we didn't settle it with blows... But we didn't part on the best of terms..."

**Meanwhile in a cavern under Mount Fuji**

The sounds of hammer and chisel echoed. Ornn had been working for months. One last detail was needed to finish his work. It remained elusive. Ornn paused. The face of his grandson stared back. Painstakingly rendered in basalt. Curly hair and horns, hollows in the eyes for a pair of emeralds Ornn had cut. A warm smile on his face. Despite his hardships Izuku had always had a smile for him. Ornn shuddered as he remembered that day. 

He reached out a hand to his work. He felt the contours of the bust. The defined yet rounded cheeks, small pot marks for his freckles. How much of his mother in him. She had a good heart too. Ornn glanced to her. In the fire light her eyes gleamed. Her smile was warm too, full of sweetness and care. He remembered that day too. _You can't take him! He's all I have left!_ Ornn looked away. He had failed her. He looked to his son, more like himself but still kinder. A thin smile on a tired face. Hizashi was a hard worker and a good father. Better than himself. _I love her dad. I'm going to live with her. Your welcome to come with me. Get out of here, see the world again._ Ornn looked down. **_You failed them. You failed them all._**

Ornn felt his anger build inside. The voice haunted him still. **_All your work was wasted on the wrong things and your chance for redemption you failed as well. How many more times are you going to lose the ones you love? You stubborn naive goat!_** Ornn roared into the darkness, " **SHUT UP YOU FOUL DEAD THING!"** In his anger he rose to confront his tormentor, knocking Izuku's bust to the floor. Ornn flinched as it broke with violent force. He moved to inspect the damage, most of it was smashed. "No! I'm sorry! I'm sorry my boy... I'm so sorry. I lost you too." Ornn sank to his knees cradling a section of the bust's face that had survived. He held it in his hands, the empty eye glaring back. "I don't know Izuku... how do I fix this... how do I fix this..." Ornn sobbed in the dark. Surrounded by his failures, all nine of them. His tormentor chuckled at his sorrow.


	4. New Forge, New Rules

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Midoriya arrives for Orientation, meets new people, and old...

**Day of Oreintation**

**Sosaki Residence**

It was early that morning when Sosaki woke up.Today was a very exciting day, but one that could go wrong so fast with Izuku. She wandered the house looking for him. While she hadn't officially adopted Midoriya, she and the other members of the Wild Pussycats had pretty much taken him in like Kota. Sleep was something that happened for a bare minimum with Izuku and they had learned very quickly in the time he had stayed with them: boredom was dangerous. Izuku had trouble recognizing when he was bored, in his old home environment he always had things to do or could do whatever he wanted to distract himself. Living in an urban apartment with no space for a "decent workshop" and Izuku's aversion to games or idle recreation had meant they needed to learn methods of distraction. She found him wide awake in the living room. "You finished another puzzle?" Izuku made an annoyed growl in response. Mandalay walked to the table and saw he was having trouble with this latest one.

The first time they had tried to play games with Izuku it hadn't gone well. He stated that 'games are time wasting frivolities and time is more valuable than gold.' Watching TV, outside of the news or hero documentaries, had been unsuccessful. Finally Izuku put forward his own solution... by taking apart the toaster. Turns out he had a curious mind, in particular for mechanical and technological devices, but generally liked making or solving puzzles. 'We didn't have anything like this in The Hearth, this was the smallest and least used device and I felt compelled to study it. My Grandfather always said the best way to learn how something is made is to carefully unmake it.' After being ordered to 'remake' the toaster they learned the best method of distraction to get any sort of puzzle or assembly kit. They had gotten hold of a rubrik's cube and hoped that it would buy them some time. They were horrified to watch Izuku solve it in seconds, learning that Ornn had made his own rubrik's cube in the past and had given it to Izuku to solve years ago. Thankfully they quickly adapted and instead got a few large jigsaw puzzles to throw at him. These had lasted a bit longer. The last one was the emergency puzzle, an infamous solid color jigsaw puzzle. One thousand pieces all the same color.

"As much as I appreciate the creative method behind making a jigsaw puzzle picture, I find the assembly of this one overly frustrating all for the sake of rendering a large red rectangle." Izuku wasn't wearing his helmet so Mandalay could see the look of concentration on his face. It was amusing in a way, most would give up but Izuku seemed to thrive on challenges despite his seeming displeasure. _Stubborn as a goat._ Mandalay smiled before putting a head through his hair. He had developed a measure of control over his extremities and his hair didn't catch fire unless he got angry. "I hope you got enough sleep, Orientation is today. Its not a day of classes but you'll learn the curriculum requirements. I'll go start breakfast, assuming you didn't dismantle anything." Izuku grunted in the negative, still not getting jokes or sarcasm.

One hour and a serving of cereal with dried peppers later and Izuku gathered his helmet, school bag, and his new cellphone. "So, you remember the route your going to take? You have your ID card for entry? No picking fights. Keep your negative thoughts to yourself." Izuku grunted in the affirmative each time. Finally Mandalay realized she had no more points to make. "Have a good first day okay?" This time Izuku spoke, "I will try... please stay safe on patrol." Mandalay smiled. It didn't happen often and it didn't come across as particularly emotional or worried but Izuku had clearly formed attachments with all of them. "We will." 

Izuku walked to the corner and looked back, seeing Ragdoll and Tiger wave back before he turned the corner and was immediately tempted to break the rule about no lava tube travel. Walking and riding trains was so much slower and he was anxious. Today he would have access to a proper forge again. All the time spent not working or using his quirk had been torturous. The puzzles had helped but he had an itch to pick up a lump of metal and shape it into something. He hadn't noticed he had picked up speed until he finished jogging to the first tram station.

** One hour later **

** UA High Support Department Classroom 1-H **

Maijima shouldn't have been surprised to see a familiar silver armored figure walk through the gates but it still startled him to think Midoriya had survived his incident with the school. It was early though with almost no other student having arrived on campus yet. He followed Midoriya's progress as he quickly and purposely made his way to 1-H. Maijima was glad he had thought to wait in the classroom rather than the teacher's lounge, maybe it was an unconscious realization he'd see Midoriya come early. Then he was surprised again when the _other_ wild child appeared only a minute or two behind Midoriya.

Midoriya opened the door and scanned the room. He saw Maijima sitting at a desk at the front of the class. Maijima waved Midoriya in and without a word he walked in and stood, arms crossed, at the back of the room. Maijima felt Midoriya staring him down, perhaps in anxiety, excitement, annoyance, he wasn't sure. Moments later the door opened again and Hatsume was among them. _This will get interesting fast, wonder how they'll get along with each other._ Whatever Maijima was waiting for didn't happen as Mei quickly took a seat close to the door. She sat, smiled, and started figuratively vibrating in her chair. _Ok then, guess I'll have to wait._

Minutes later and the rest of the class filtered in. Lot of talented and creative students this year, many of them more level headed in Maijima's opinion. "Welcome to class 1-H. I will be acting as both your homeroom and your Support Department Teacher. Now unlike most of the other classes I believe showing is as important as telling. Grab a syllabus from the desk and then follow me. We're going to tour the Workshop." Both Midoriya and Mei moved with their own approach to haste. Midoriya hadn't bothered sitting so he just started forward at the first instruction while Hatsume surged up out of her seat. Everyone else seemed to sense getting in either person's way was unwise and waited. The moment Maijima had been waiting for happened as both parties arrived at his desk. Midoriya arrived a second before and reached out for a syllabus when Hatsume's hand surged to his own gauntlet-ed hand. "Hmmmm, wonderful design. Even better material! The articulation it gets is astounding, what kind of motor control does this baby have?" Midoriya froze while Hatsume studied his hand. "I am not an infant."

Mei looked up into the face of the robot which had just spoke. Or at least she first assumed it was a robot. The heavy, steady, and unflinching pace it set along with the complete metal body had made her instincts scream 'machine' to her. With her quirk though she examined the subtle shape of a frowning face hidden behind the dark glass of the face mask. _There is a person inside._ "Oh, I see. So its a suit, not a robot. Interesting. Whats this baby for then?" The frown deepened inside the helm, "My suit is also not infantile, its purpose is to contain my quirk. My body emits a resting temperature of slightly less than six hundred degrees centigrade." Sounds of shock or concern started coming from the rest of the class. Sounds of scuffling or people banging into desks as they instinctively backpedaled. Mei wasn't concerned, the suit was working, she couldn't feel a single degree of heat coming from him. "Very nice. What are the materials?" Mei was examining the rest of the suit as she spoke and went, Maijima and the syllabus forgotten. "Collected molten secretions which I pulled the titanium from, carved plates of basalt as a layer of insulation, fire wyrm leather for two layers of separation and the numerous stripes." Mei had never heard of fire wyrm leather but she suspected it was some kind of synthetic material meant to act like traditional leather that could withstand the heat. But all together she could picture it. The titanium shell was relatively lightweight for defense and heat absorption for whatever passed through the layer of basalt, the basalt in (most likely) laminated plates, and the wearer inside it all. "You must be pretty strong, you move in this so easily." The boy grunted before replying, "An offshoot of my quirk appears to be heightened strength, my bodies heat generation means my muscles operate well above the human norm. I can lift two thousand pounds without too much trouble." The sounds of surprise kept coming from the background until someone else asked their own question in carefully spoken Japanese.

"If you have all this power, why aren't you in the hero course?" Izuku turned slowly. Behind him a pale young man with blue eyes and messy brown hair was looking at him. "This suit is not designed for combat. It is heavy but not especially effective at taking punishment. If it breaches I don't have the materials or means to repair it outside of one location. I am too dangerous to be a hero. But I know how to use a forge and I'm here to learn what heroes need to keep people safe, that's how I save lives." Izuku watched as everyone in the room reacted to his words, looks of understanding and acceptance were all around. The blue eyed boy blinked and quickly nodded at his words. "Well said, I'm Paul Weston, foreign exchange student from the USA." "I am Midoriya Izuku, native to Japan." Weston smirked in amusement. "If you could all wait to get to know each other, we have a schedule to keep and a Workshop to tour." Everyone snapped back to attention as Maijima opened a door on the other side of the room.

**Several hours later**

Midoriya followed the crowd of people out of the fourth class of the day, Present Mic's English Class, and to the cafeteria. He felt uncomfortable again. He still had issues with crowds of people, particularly when they were focused on him. Over time he had become something of a class celebrity after having molded a metal ingot in front of everyone with his bare hands and told a bit of his life story. Of living in a volcano for years, being taken in by the Wild Pussycats, fighting school staff and getting away with it, and by beating Echtoplasm's gauntlet of math questions in third period. The two that had decided to get closest to him were Mei and Paul. Mei loved 'talking shop' and listing all her projects while Paul seemed more content to listen and seemed skilled at helping to explain social nuances to him. Paul had also introduced himself at the end of first period with Power Loader-Sensei by listing that he likely had a 'ghost quirk' for sound. He listed his love of music and his ability to 'see' sound and musical notes in his head, making a reference to a man named Mozart's talent for understanding music. Paul's future plans were to develop a number of sensory based support items for the next generation which could be used for a number of purposes. He also mentioned something about 'moonlighting as a DJ' on occasion.

"Hey Midoriya, we've talked a lot about my babies and your suit but I'm curious, what else are you working on?" Izuku looked to Mei who was staring intently while doing her best to walk match-step with him. "I haven't seen any of the hero students demonstrate their quirks and I have not received any commissions yet." Mei frowned at the answer, "so you don't have any plans to make babies of your own?" Izuku couldn't help the flinch that hit him at the literal interpretation his mind gave him of 'having children'. He had regretted asking where children come from after his Grandfather gave a very short and uncensored description of procreation and what happens for the next nine months to the woman involved. But he had gotten better at understanding that Mei considered her works like her children, but her phrasing had caught him off-guard.

"You okay Midoriya? You seized up pretty hard there." Paul was smiling again but was staring hard at Mei when he said it. "I'm fine, as I was saying; for right now I don't have any ideas for future projects. That will change once I get the chance to study the students enrolled in the hero courses, perhaps they'll even come to us for commissions. When I have an idea of what is needed, I'll get to work." But Mei only seemed to grow more upset at his answer. "But how do you learn if you don't practice? Trial and error, failure is the greatest teacher of all." Izuku actually laughed at that, "you sound like my grandfather, said the day you 'master' something is the saddest day in anyone's life. You can never improve past that point." Everyone around laughed a bit in turn. It was a piece of advice as old as they come. Everyone has heard something like it in their life. "First I need to know what people need Hatsume. Imagine I made countless suits of heavy armor when the majority of heroes are either ranged fighters who need to be light and fast or already have a quirk that makes armor redundant. Most, if not all, of my work goes to waste. You can make a million wonderful pieces of equipment but its all wasted if no one has need of any of it." Mei started pouting for a moment before shrugging "Well we'll see. I'll bet every one of my babies finds a use, while you make maybe have a dozen that people asked for and don't know what they were truly looking for." Izuku smiled under his helmet and actually thought about the value of that mindset. _I think I'm going to like it here._

Then Midoriya felt unease come back as the crowding grew in concentration. The engineering students became packed together as more numerous groups of general studies students, and the two first year hero courses all herded together at the doors for the cafeteria. Midoriya felt himself grow ever more uncomfortable and impatient to break through the crowds. "Everyone get behind me." Without another warning Izuku pushed himself to the front of the knot of engineering students before releasing a pair of vents just below his breastplate. Not exactly fair or kind but the blast of heat certainly made an impression. Between cries of surprise, confusion, and discomfort Izuku pushed ahead like the bow of an icebreaker. It didn't take long for some students to realize what he was doing. One was far from pleased by his antics. **"HEY! ASSHOLE WITH THE HEAT QUIRK! EVER HEARD OF WAITING YOUR TURN?"**

Bakugo watched the one in the silver knight suit shudder for a second before turning their head to look back his way. Their eyes locked, Bakugo staring down the creepy glowing green eyes of the offender in question. But before anything more could be said, the silver suited chump was being pushed through the entrance of the cafeteria. He hissed in scorn but the flow of the crowd would get him through to the cafeteria in time. He'd find that cheater then and give him his challenge for after school then. "Man, so unmanly. Using his quirk to force his way through." Bakugo felt himself tense as shitty hair spoke right over his shoulder. He was getting real annoyed at this guy, acting like they were friends. He hadn't earned that right. Bakugo was... not sad... disappointed no one else from his dojo had applied to UA with him. On the one hand he had pride in being the only one to pass, but having one or two of them would have been good to help keep him sharp. That kangaroo kid had said he came from another dojo so there was that, and maybe shitty hair would have enough spirit to get into his own dojo. Bakugo hadn't earned a high enough rank in his dojo to earn the privilege to teach and he wouldn't risk embarrassing himself or his dojo by doing it poorly with a beginner. That and Kyokushin was far from beginner friendly to begin with, something he'd demonstrate to Mr. white knight.

Izuku couldn't shake the cold feeling running along his spine. His grandfather described the feeling when he felt it himself, of when you run into a ghost from your past. He was sure he'd just encountered one. "Uh Midoriya..." Izuku turned back to the table he was sharing with Paul, Mei, and another young girl from the support department, he wasn't sure of her name. "Yes paul? What is it?" Paul was looking at Midoriya's selection of food. He had taken a large number of pork cutlets that were on offer, a favorite since childhood. He had added his preferred topping of dried cayenne peppers and sprinkled them liberally. Besides that he had about nothing else. "That all your eating?" Izuku contemplated this before coming to a possible answer, "Am I not allowed seconds?" Everyone looked a bit confused before realization donned. "I guess you didn't eat a lot of vegetables inside a volcano." Izuku nodded, "my grandfather was not a fan of them. I haven't even seen any before living with... my foster family." Paul nodded before continuing, "and who are they?" Izuku held up a finger in silent request, before starting to initiate the shift in pressure seals around his helmet. The moment the helmet was off he heard a curious sound from all around him. He looked and saw that Paul was staring with eyebrows raised high and eyes wide, the other girl seemed to be staring slightly above his head _at my horns... oh no here we go._ He looked at Mei who... was blushing while looking right at him. _Must be from the heat that came from unsealing my helmet._ "You know... I was not expecting that." Izuku looked at Paul who was staring away and blinking. "The horns?" Izuku had gotten it before. "Well no, I figured the horns were there when you described your grandfather. But for someone locked in a volcano for years you look pretty damn good." Izuku heard Mei make a noise but when he looked she was looking away as well. "Uh... thanks?" Then the other girl made her own comment, "tanned and firm... like a-" she quickly stopped when Izuku looked at her.

"So that's what you look like underneath." Izuku felt the chill return in force. He turned in his chair to see a very angry looking young man with blond hair and... red eyes... red... "Kacchan?" The reaction was like watching someone get a bucket of cold water splashed in their face. The look of anger was put out and in its place was confusion and something like horror. "What did you call me?" Izuku sat up out of his chair and studied his old friend. Same fierce red eyes, pale blond hair, sharp face. "Its you... its good to see you again Kacchan." But Kacchan was far as far from feeling the incredible warmth and happiness Izuku was feeling at meeting his old childhood friend. "You... you died." Now it was Izuku's turn to feel horror. "The night of the fire. I'm sorry Kacchan, that must have been horrifying to hear about. I am sorry to say it was the night my quirk manifested. I didn't have control then, still don't today. But don't worry, I have learned how to contain it safely." Izuku had hoped his old friend might calm at his words but instead he went back to being angrier, in fact he seemed to grow even more furious, "contain it? **YOU KILLED YOUR MOTHER WITH THAT QUIRK!"** The pain Izuku felt in that moment... nothing had come close before. "Whoa! Hey! What the hell are you talking about?" Paul was at Izuku's side in a flash, Mei was silently glaring at Bakugo by his right. Izuku didn't speak, he felt like he couldn't breathe. In his mind he tried desperately to form words to defend himself. They didn't come. Instead, Bakugo continued, "You caused that fire! You killed your own mother and disappeared so you wouldn't get the blame! Your a murderer you piece of shit! **YOU SHOULDN'T BE HERE!"** Then something changed. Inside Izuku a fire was lit, but unlike the fire of determination he felt when setting himself to a task, this was dark and cold. It smothered the good will he felt. "Take it back."

Bakugo had watched Midoriya's eyes shift. Change from watery and confused to something else. Now there was no softness, his eyes didn't glow, they had become dark with pins of focus, right on him. "No. You don't belong here. You are no hero." Then the messy brown haired kid was between them, trying and failing to push them away from each other. "Thats enough. I have no idea what your talking about. Midoriya has lived with his grandfather for years. And for the record he's not in the hero course." Baguko locked on the interloper with his glare, "He doesn't belong here, period. I was going to challenge him to a fight to prove he was worth taking up space here but now I know." He looked back at Midoriya, his face hadn't changed. Set as stone in a frown, but his eyes looked like he was ready to fight him now. "You have one chance to take back what you said Bakugo. If you don't, we are going to settle this one way or another. What happened that night was an accident. I regret what happened, but I will not allow anyone to say I killed my own mother." Midoriya did not shout, he did not cry, his voice was low, but unlike anyone Bakugo had came into conflict before; his words set the room rumbling. "You want an apology? Prove you deserve it. Name a place and we'll settle this after classes." Bakugo felt himself smirk, remembering the first time Midoriya had tried fighting him over something. It had been a long time since he'd had an easy fight. "Midoriya, no. Its not worth it." Bakugo watched rat's nest hair try and talk Midoriya out of the fight. "How soon can you be at Mt. Fuji?" Bakugo couldn't help the laugh that came from himself. "Mt. Fuji? You joking or did you want us to fight like samurai?" "The slopes are empty of hikers this time of year and there less risk of me burning something down while we're fighting." Well, far be it from Bakugo to allow a fight to be held back or interrupted by concern over some plants. "We don't need to go that far. My Dojo is quirk proofed. I've sparred there a hundred times with no issues. Meet me at Izanuma Dojo in downtown." Bakugo didn't wait for _Deku_ to accept. He wouldn't dare.

Izuku spent the rest of the day silently fuming. Paul and Mei had down their best to convince him it wasn't worth going. He told them flatly that he was going, end of discussion. They then offered to join him to watch him fight. He didn't encourage them but he didn't say no either. When the final bell finally rung Izuku was surging out of class. He had used his new smart-phone's gps search tool to learn Izanuma Dojo location and the nearest tram. Part of him wanted to tube there but he had promised no more tubing outside of life threatening emergencies. His personal honor kept him from interpreting the wording as life threatening for others. Right now Izuku wanted to find Bakugo and drag him into molten earth and be done with it. But he wanted that apology more. More than that, some of his grandfather's worldly advice sounded in his head; "Once a human kneels, they rarely stand again." Izuku would make Bakugo kneel, pound him into the earth until he no longer had the temerity to stand and insult him. Paul and Mei raced up behind him. "Midoriya please, this is what he wants. Even if you win, you justify his words in his mind and in the minds who watch this fight. Be better than him, if he won't apologize then leave." "I accepted the fight. I won't go back on my word and I won't let him insinuate I killed my mother. Its beyond tolerance." Paul signed as he pursued, "then at least be humble and merciful in victory. Or he'll win no matter what." In the back of Izuku's mind, Paul's words resonated, but they were far away.

**One travel across town** **later**

Bakugo and Midoriya had seen each other on the train. Bakugo hadn't expected it but his surprise didn't last more than a moment. His face betrayed no anxiety, only anticipation. They had walked a distance apart, Bakugo's new collection of hangers on kept trading stares with Izuku and his new friends. When they arrived outside the fair sized two story studio Bakugo finally turned back to meet him. "Last chance to run Deku." "I will not turn back without your full apology. Nor will the fight." In that moment of finality, Bakugo changed. His cocky smirk disappeared. His face went calm, his eyes grew focused. Izuku met his gaze. Bakugo blinked first. "I'll make the arrangement for the fight. The lobbyist will let you know when you can use the lockers. When the time to fight comes, they'll call you out." Bakugo and the others went in ahead. Izuku followed just behind.

"Sensei, we need to talk." Valdi turned to watch his star pupil enter. He was still dressed in his UA uniform. Valdi was not like your average man. More than anything really, he was a giant grizzly bear acting like a man. Brown fur and a scar over his left eye, the eye itself was white. He sniffed the air at his student's approach. "You bring a fight with you." He sniffed again and felt surprise seize him. _Couldn't be._ "Yes Sensei, a demon from the past. I called him out for what he is and he accepted my challenge." Valdi nodded in response. The other students hadn't arrived yet so a sparring match was possible. He didn't expect the challenger to last long. Bakugo bowed before heading for the lockers. But rather than send a message to the lobbyist to let them in, Valdi would meet this challenger himself. He passed through to the lobby and gazed around. He saw and smelled a number of outsiders. One among them drew his attention. Clad in silver armor and smelling of fire. "You. You are the challenger?" The silver figure along with the others all stared but of them all he betrayed no surprise or fear. From behind the armor a strong voice answered, "I am." Valdi sensed it then. _The Blood of the Mountain._ "Guest lockers are on the left. Makes what changes that you will. We'll call you when the time comes." He watched the figure walk away and felt anticipation build within him. "The rest of you, get a guest badge from the front desk and find a place to sit on the edge of the dojo. And no interference in the fight or you'll be out on your ass in a flash."

After a personal eternity of waiting Bakugo heard the call come from the dojo floor. He had changed into something far more comfortable. For actual fights he preferred a cut down karategi, pretty much just the waist and short pant legs. He looked to his belt, green with brown tags. _Three ranks from black. More than enough for the likes of Deku._ Bakugo quickly strode forwards onto the dojo. He looked around and saw a number of other students had arrived. Two he considered rivals and near friends, most were far lower ranks and even some fresh Myuku watching with wide eyes. He saw his classmates in the corner who quickly gathered forward and cheered. He tried to scowl at the inappropriate attention but he was in a good mood. He looked back to the other side of the dojo to the entrance for the guest lockers. Deku hadn't shown yet. "Where are you Deku? You afraid?" He had meant to keep the words in his head but the cheers were getting him excited. Then he started sweating. _Sweating... I shouldn't be sweating yet... I... I can't be scared!_ Then he noticed everyone seemed to be sweating and most moving to the right side of the dojo. Then there was Deku. Slow marching into the room. The first thing Bakugo noticed was that unlike his mental image of Midoriya looking like some taned yet soft bodied male model from a men's fashion commercial... he was built more like a western body builder. Heavily toned muscle on his arms and legs with packed abs hinting at their existence beneath the black underlayer that clung to his chest and thighs. Both his classmates and Izuku's were making a variety of remarks. Everyone else was quiet. "I was expecting you to keep the armor." Bakugo settled into his stance, one leg forward, knees bent, arms held at the ready. "Its not meant for physical protection, I can't risk it sustaining damage." Midoriya followed suite, his own stance alien to Bakugo. On instinct and experience he studied it and guessed it was a grappler's stance. Midoriya was leaning forward, arms out with hands open his own legs planted slightly wide and forward. _Not your typical judo or Aikido, foreign or just instinctive?_ Then Sensei called the fight to start and it didn't matter. A loping stride forward to bring him in range and Bakugo let fly. A blast of power and his body was pivoting into a rocket powered right roundhouse heading for Deku's head! Half a second later and all of Bakugo's momentum was reversed as he felt himself lift off the ground by his leg before instinct drove him to get his supporting leg back under him.

_Flashy, fast, aggressive, wasteful, and obvious._ Izuku may have been shorter than Bakugo but he was far from slower or weaker. Taking the hit with his arm and shoulder had been far from pleasant but he had stopped it and had it pinned. The next step was simple: push forward, unbalance opponent, when he attempts to right himself; twist. Indeed, Bakugo managed to plant his back leg back on the floor and was bracing against his charge. The thing about muscles though, when you strengthen them in one place, they get weaker in others. Izuku shifted his charge into lifting and sidestepping to his right. The quick and sudden change in direction had the desired effect as with no more resistance to his forward push he helped Izuku pivot him counter-clock wise and with the new momentum behind it, Izuku lifted Bakugo off the ground and into a throw, or what seemed to be a throw. Bakugo immediately moved to wrap his now free leg around Izuku's head so Izuku used that. He hauled Bakugo up before performing a half spin where he stood, throwing all of Bakugo's momentum back off kilter again and finally slamming bakugo into the ground on his back with enough force to make the mats beneath whip crack. Izuku heard Bakugo cry out briefly and felt the customary jerk of muscles in response to a sudden stop after a fall, he wasn't done. As soon as Bakugo had landed Izuku was hauling him back up while his muscles were rigid and locked. With frenzied speed Izuku lifted and did another half spin the other way before finally letting go of Bakugo and Bakugo seemed more than happy to get off Midoriya's wild ride. Izuku still wasn't done though. He knew he had the momentum right now, he also knew giving up his grapple advantage to someone with powerful kicks and longer legs was bad strategy. As Bakugo tumbled into a crouch, Izuku was on him again. Using his current height and position advantage he got into a very close choking grapple with Bakugo forcing Bakugo to keep his hands locked on Izuku's arms to get leverage and keeping his own weight bearing down on his body so he couldn't get his legs out from under him. Now choke hold isn't completely appropriate as his hands weren't clasped around Bakugo's throat, instead they were locked around his head with his forearms pressing down on his shoulders while he dug his thumbs into the hollow of muscles behind the ears and jaw (if you are wondering how this is supposed to be an effective combat move, a number of blood veins run there to your brain and that the pressure is painful and stops a good bit of blood and oxygen to your brain... not fun at all).

_WHAT THE HELL? HOW DID THIS GO SO WRONG SO FAST?_ Bakugo was sweating furiously but couldn't bring the focus needed to make more rocket bursts to try and get Deku off him. He was more than just sweating though, he felt sick with overheating. His body didn't ache so much as he felt like he was fighting the flu and an opponent. _How hot does he run? The armor... he said it contained his quirk. The quirk that started the fire at his old apartment. Can't risk damaging it. Radiation? No, then he could never remove it. But this heat..._ He struggled against Midoriya, realizing he didn't have the strength to get his arms off him and he needed to break out of this grapple he threw a few punches into his opponent's chest. The sudden increase in weight and pressure on his head told him he wasn't making progress there. _Got to get away... crap. I hate this move._ Bakugo fell back on a move he loathed to use as giving ground was not his preferred tactic for making space. The classic unbalance and leg flip. He fell back and shifted his legs to get under Deku. It failed utterly as if sensing his intent by falling back Midoriya rolled his stance forward and bisected Bakugo's legs with his right leg before dropping his knee right into his own stomach. Bakugo had already braced his stomach in anticipation of the flip so it didn't hit his stomach like a lift bar through a jello cake but now he had Deku's knee in his guts, his other leg was planted just behind his own right leg and now the bastard had one arm pressed over his throat and his fist pulled back to jab him in the face. _I badly underestimated him._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have been steadily working on this chapter since April. TBH it started pretty badly as it coincided with when I had all my real life stuff blow up on me and left me REALLY depressed and in poor state of mind to write. I am so sorry for the wait everyone. As a bit of repayment I decided I was gonna go all out and combine this and what was supposed to be the next chapter together into a big ol' super chapter! 
> 
> I hope you all enjoy and as always kudos, comments, and fan-art is much appreciated.
> 
> (For the people still waiting for updates to my other works, they are coming I promise.)


	5. Fallout

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For every action there is a reaction and consequences

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know, I should learn to not make promises when my life is kinda up in the air. Like how updates would be regular... one day...

Izuku paced his room and tried to calm down. He wasn't succeeding. His thoughts kept going back to the dojo. Feeling unfulfilled in the aftermath of his fight with Bakugo. He'd gotten his apology, but it didn't satisfy. He still felt cold and yet angry inside. He replayed it in his mind over and over again. His new friends yelling at him to stop, the smell of flesh burning.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of his bedroom door opening. He turned to look and saw Kota peering in at him. This was enough to get Izuku to stop, Kota spent as little time around him as possible and avoided him the entire day if he could help it. For a solid minute they kept their locked on each other, until a noise from somewhere else in the house caused Kota to flinch. He peered down the hall towards the living room and where the voices of the hero team could be heard in some form of debate. Izuku expected Kota to retreat back to his own room to avoid being caught, Izuku was being punished by "grounding" as Sosaki put it. Instead Kota slipped into his room before quietly closing the door.

This was truly unusual. Near as Izuku could tell, Kota was risking similar punishment by contact with him. Kota turned to Izuku resumed staring at him. Izuku had little experience understanding people but Kota was one of the few that seemed relateable to his limited experience. Kota was distant, emotionally withdrawn, much like his grandfather. Despite his appearance of brooding disapproval and apparent resentment, Izuku could sense Kota was here for a reason.

"Heard you got into another fight," Kota whispered, breaking the silence first. "I did," Izuku replied. Kota's eyes narrowed before snorting in frustration. "Why, you were told no more fights or you'd get kicked out of your precious hero school," Kota asked. His words made Izuku's foul mood return but instead of resuming pacing he felt heat build and threaten to flow to his exposed extremities. Not wanting to catch fire and set off the fire alarm _(again)_ Izuku held his breath and forced his body to cool. When the dreaded keening of the fire didn't come Izuku let out a sigh of relief. He looked at Kota and realized this wasn't like his earlier experiences talking with the hostile little boy.

"I didn't start it and it didn't happen on school grounds, therefore I didn't break the rules or my promises." Which was true, although it didn't help him to feel better. Kota's posture shifted, subtly, but to Izuku it was a major change. Gone was the direct hostility towards him, now there was something else besides the curiosity. Kota didn't seem to do anything to prompt him but now Izuku felt it difficult to stop. "At lunch time I encountered someone from my early childhood, before my quirk manifested. I thought I'd encountered a long lost friend... He called me a murderer." Izuku felt a terrible weight settle on him at those words.

Kota kept staring and Izuku kept up his one sided confession. Highlighting how someone who was once his best friend shouted out loud in the middle of a high school cafeteria that he had killed his mother with his quirk and disappeared. How the shock of it and the cold rage filled him and demanded Bakugo answer for it. How he had accepted the challenge, the fight, how he had battled Bakugo to submission... and how he went too far.

"I had him on his back. I could tell he was beaten, his position was inescapable and I had won. But I wasn't... satisfied." At this point Izuku had collapsed onto his fire proof futon, positioned right under the fire alarm in his room. A conscious decision when he moved in. Kota was sitting next to him, maintaining his quiet stare all the while. Izuku hadn't heard Kota make a sound the whole time, listening and waiting when he paused. "I felt... like he deserved... more. More pain, more humiliation for his words and his thoughtlessness. That's how I justified... what I wanted to do. I wanted to hurt him like he hurt me." Izuku felt the tears in his eyes. Here, they were harder to ignore. They didn't evaporate so easily.

Izuku didn't tell Kota what he did, but he remembered. How he heated his hands where he had them pressed to the sides of Bakugo's neck and head. How he left Bakugo with two burns in the shape of his hands. How Paul had to run in and shout at him to stop while Bakugo's friend Kirishima dragged him off of Bakugo. How everyone had looked afraid. How this one event proved he was right about being too dangerous to be hero. The dark look the Dojo Sensei had given him, like he could see how Izuku was one step from being what he always feared he'd become, _a monster._

It took Izuku a few moments to calm himself enough to finish. How Bakugo had needed medical treatment for the burns. The looks of fear and revulsion on the faces of Bakugo's friends, both those from UA and the Dojo. He couldn't even look at Weston or Hatsume. Worst of all was the feeling of dread when Bjorn-Sensei had ordered him to the guest locker room for a private discussion. Izuku didn't talk about what he had said, his words shocked him to his core.

_"I never expected my grandnephew to be such a ferocious fighter! Heh heh heh. Yes, I am your great uncle. I don't expect my brother ever mentioned me. If you see him again, let him know I'm doing fine. And that I'm impressed. You have great strength young cub. With my guidance, you could take that power even further. You don't have to accept my offer now. I can tell what happened today was the first time you ever fought with real intent and it can be... shocking how powerful the warrior's spirit can be. But in time, you'll feel the thrill that comes from fighting with every ounce of your being, when you can fight an opponent and not hold back, you'll savor that feeling. As for Bakugo, he will be fine, it was a good lesson to never take an opponent for granted. Come back any time, I will teach you how to really direct your quirk!"_

Izuku hadn't said a word as his newly discovered great uncle left him to think on what he meant. All Izuku could feel then was horror and guilt. This is not what he came here to do. Why was he here? He couldn't find an answer so he settled to claim what he had originally demanded. Izuku told Kota how Bakugo was forced to grit out an apology while his jaw was gritted in a rictus of pain. Eyes full of pain and dark hate staring back. Disapproval in the eyes of his gathered friends. All Izuku felt then, as he felt now in his room, was regret.

"You know the rest, I got home late without calling Mandalay and she had tasked Ragdoll to find me. I explained to them what happened and they made it clear I had failed my obligations. I should have ignored Bakugo, not risen to his 'bait' and gotten into a fight. Now I am supposed to give my own apology to Bakugo's family and spend a week 'grounded' with only school work to fill my time at home." Izuku felt more tired in that moment than he ever had working for his Grandfather. Nothing about today had gone right and he had likely suffered irreversible damage to his relationships with everyone involved except for his Great Uncle. An individual who Izuku could tell he wanted nothing to do with.

"... That's sounds... stupid," Kota finally responded. To Izuku it was such a simple yet effective way of summarizing himself. He had been stupid, incredibly so. "That Bakugo asshole started it and you get punished? That's so stupid!" Yet again, Izuku felt himself suffer 'whiplash' from those around him. He snapped his head to Kota who looked like he'd hardly changed but Izuku could tell he was now furious and confused at the same time. "This Bakugo, he's supposed to be a 'hero-in-training' who are supposed to be brave, and caring, and save people. But he meets you for the first time in years after your quirk accidentally set your house on fire. You lost your mom because of that! How dare he say something so horrible and not be the bad guy! What makes him being a hero, make it okay to say that to you!"

At this point Izuku was completely turned around. Despite everything, Kota was defending him. Had he not heard how Izuku had burned Bakugo? How he had been foolish for getting drawn into a fight for words which were wrong? Words are words, as Mandalay put it, Izuku should have ignored them. Instead he let them control him and make him do bad things. Izuku said as much but Kota wasn't entirely swayed. "You are dumb for fighting that Bakugo asshole, adults always hate it when you fight. But you did it because Bakugo said terrible things and wasn't punished for saying them! He's wrong! If heroes are so great, how come no one saved your mom? Heroes are supposed to save people, instead they either let people die or they die! Heroes are stupid!" And then Izuku remembered why Kota lived here with his aunt instead of with his own parents. They died fighting a terrible villain. Kota lost his parents, like Izuku lost his.

"My quirk got my mother killed Kota," was Izuku's sad reply. "You were five. Two years younger than me right now. When my quirk appeared I panicked and sprayed everyone in my class with water.I was lucky because all it did was make people wet. Your quirk started a fire. You didn't control fire, you started one. How were you supposed to stop it? And you're one of the smart ones. You know quirks are dangerous. Being a hero is stupid, either you kill people, get killed, or get others killed all for a big popularity contest!" The hard edge in Kota's voice hadn't changed but now Izuku knew it wasn't directed at him. For some reason, Kota was on his side, perhaps the only one now. "You know I go to school to learn how to make gear for heroes right?" Kota stared at him for a moment. "Yeah, you're still an idiot for trying to help them... but at least your helping because it's the right thing to do. Maybe they'll actually learn something if you keep hitting them when they act like assholes. It's too bad you'll get in trouble every time."

And with those amazing words of support, Kota got up and walked for the door. Izuku watched him go. He also flinched when Kota opened the door to reveal all four of the wild pussycats hovering just outside. Kota looked at all of them and without a word walked past them all, leaving the door open as he went back to his own bedroom down the hall. There was an awkward pause before Ragdoll recovered first.  
  
"Dinner's ready..."

**Meanwhile in the apartment above Izanuma Dojo**

For once in a long time Valdi Bjorn felt hope. Hope for the future. For so many years now he had been lost, adrift. For so long he had no hope of ever embracing his old bloodlust. Of finding something worth sinking his teeth into. Stuck training brats and weaklings how to tap into even a sliver of their potential as warriors. He had tried reforming the Ursine, his old criminal organization. But looking back he realized how... pathetic that had all been. A group of like minded pugilists and bar brawlers roving for the next fight. Then he had found his true calling amidst the good old days of chaos. Years ago, when the strong ruled and were reveared. When survival of the fittest was the only means of thriving. When the only one mightier than he was live.  
  
And today, not one but two good omens appeared before him. He had discovered the heir to _the Blood of the Earth_ was alive. And now he examined a note bearing the scent of a familiar man. A man he remembered serving, _him._ One moment he had been alone, contemplating his grand nephew. The next it had appeared with a blast of old scents and older memories. He read the note and rumbled in pleasure. His master was alive after all, and war was coming. War against All Might the Symbol of Decay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally finished it at 4:30 AM. Why is it I have writing breakthroughs in the dead of night? So we have fluff for what happened. Izuku and Kota bonding over hero favoritism being stupid. And more cross over antagonist development and foreshadowing! Yay!
> 
> As always comments, kudos, and bookmarks are much appreciated.


	6. Rekindling old relations & repairing damage to new ones

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Apologies are made, Izuku creates his first work, and Bjorn argues with Shigaraki

Rumors fly far and fast at UA, even the teachers keep an ear open. Lunch Rush informed the rest of the staff about Bakugo's outburst during lunch period. Sadly this came at the end of the day. Today though, as the first official day of class, Higari was prepared. Once again Midoriya was first to arrive. The slow march of someone far from eager to be back at school but resolved to press forward was evident. Midoriya entered the classroom and quietly took his assigned seat at the very back, having been the last accepted support student of the class. He didn't speak and from the way his eyes glowed behind his visor, he was looking away from Higari. "Midoriya... I heard about your confrontation with Bakugo yesterday... would you like to talk about it?" Midoriya flicked his eyes to him before settling them back down at his desk. His reply came a moment later, "I'm to apologize to a member of his family after school. The matter will be settled then. I intend to stay as far away from him as I can moving forward." It was not the response Higari expected. From what he had heard, Bakugo had made a vicious accusation against Midoriya. The more quiet argument between them must have taken a dark turn.

Higari made a few more attempts to try and talk to Midoriya about it. But all he said was it was a personal matter and he would not speak of it. For a few minutes more it was the two of them alone in the quiet classroom. Then the door opened and a familiar pink haired teen entered. Higari noticed the normally endless smile on Hatsume's face was missing. She looked at Midoriya with a look of concern while gently stepping over to him. She reached out a hand as she closed but Midoriya turned his head away. She flinched before resting her hand on his plated shoulder for a moment and then walked to her seat close to the front of the class. She unpacked as much as she thought she'd need for class before starting to sketch something. Minutes later the rest of the class filtered in and something like normality entered the room.

Izuku's mood wouldn't shift from the heavy chill he felt, of guilt. He couldn't look at Hatsume or Weston. It hurt to do so. He couldn't think of a way forward, to fix what he had damaged. Unlike the myriad things he had learned to make and repair under his grandfather, he knew nothing of mending a friendship. And perhaps that was best. He focused on his lessons, buried his misgivings and pain deep. Support work that day had been learning how to write out a requisition form for materials. Most things Maijima Sensei listed as being available to order were redundant to Izuku. He could convert what he ate into raw metal of his choosing, mold it as he produced it from his hands like clay. Leather, plastic, and other non-metal materials however, would be interesting additions to his list of building materials.

Class ended with a practice test of writing out materials for a future project. And like that, Izuku had a solution. Often, when he and his grandfather had failed to resolve a conflict, they would exchange peace offerings. As Izuku had clearly been at fault, it would be on him to make his two friends peace offerings to show he wanted to make amends. Often the things he and his grandfather made carried a purpose. Often they would make new tools or perform maintenance on existing ones. As fellow craftsmen, Izuku imagined his friends would appreciate such things. In between classes and during a lonely lunch spent eating as much protein and carbs as he could, Izuku planned his means of redemption. By the end of the day, he had his planned gifts finalized. It would have to wait until tomorrow however. With the day over, he was escorted home by Tiger in a taxi cab. He prepared for the next trial he would face: Bakugo Katsuki's family and their judgement.

So far, Mitsuki couldn't understand how Bakugo had gotten into such a fight. The Wild Pussy Cats had given her the impression that anyone who would taken in by them would be kind and selfless. She had a sinking suspicion it was her son who had started things and gotten in over his head. She had honestly been willing to drop the matter but the rescue heroes had been insistent over the phone. Katsuki himself had declined coming, stating he had dojo practice. After his defeat by this mystery character he had refused to name, he had insisted on more time after school at his dojo training. The Martial Arts Sensei and Quirk Sensei had both consented stating he seemed to have more drive to better himself. Mitsuki hoped his defeated had given him some humility as well. Time would tell. "So, my son seems unwilling to name the one who beat him." The three women arrayed across from her in the living room exchanged glances. "That's... well it may be because of who he is and their history."

"History? They know each other? Wait... oh don't tell me they've fought before. I swear, all that martial arts practice just gave him a taste for fighting instead of teaching him discipline like my husband and I had hoped. Growing up when his quirk came in he became such a troublemaker. Most teachers looked the other way as long as the rough housing was 'light' as they put it. People gave him way too much praise. It swelled his ego and shortened his temper." Mitsuki stopped herself short, she could feel her own temper flaring. She saw the looks of surprise on the other's faces, Mitsuki knew what she must sound like. "Don't get me wrong. My son is certainly strong and I can tell he'll be a great hero one day. But I'm not blind to his flaws. He'll never truely grow until he learns to control his temper and consider others more carefully. Too much of his view of the world revolves around himself, but that's teenagers for you. I was no different at one point. Thank god for... well. Doesn't matter." Mitsuki set down the cup of tea she had forgotten she was holding and started to finish her thoughts when the entrance to the apartment opened and the fourth member of the wild pussy cats appeared.

Izuku took a moment to unseal his helmet. Tiger had told him it would help convince Katsuki's parents he was sincere when he made his apology. He entered the room and looked over to the living room where the adults were gathered. His eyes settled on familiar blond hair and red eyes. For a moment they stared at each other and recognition passed between them. Izuku remembered Bakugo Mitsuki, she looked the same as long lost memories he now remembered from the times she and his mother had sat and talked while he and Katsuki had played in the local park. Her face quickly went from curious to... "Izuku?" Her voice was soft, unsure. "Yes Mrs. Bakugo." Then Mitsuki broke down and started crying. Izuku had no idea how to respond. He looked to his guardians but they seemed as perplexed and uncertain as he. 

Mitsuki couldn't believe her eyes. She fought the tears to try and see him clearly. His face was leaner and had a rough tan to it, but she could still see his freckles, his green eyes, his hair which was a blend of Inko's and Hizashi's own. She remembered him even now. She could never forget the kind, quiet child who had laughed and played with her son while she and Inko watched their children with a mother's joy. How Izuku had always asked after her own wellbeing, how one time when Katsuki had thrown a tantrum and Izuku had asked if she was alright. And now here he was, alive. A deep feeling of loss and regret disappeared, filled now with a desire to embrace the long lost son of her best friend. "Izuku... can you please..." Emotion choked her so she beckoned to him to come closer instead. With slow steps he strode up to her. She reached a hand to his face. "You're alive..."

Izuku didn't understand what was going on. Instead of angry for the harm he had inflicted on her son, she cried while smiling. Her voice was tight but... she sounded happy. Izuku could not make sense of this. "Mrs. Bakugo-" before Izuku could start his apology she pulled his head close and into her shoulder. He bent forward slightly to make her attempt at... Izuku felt her wrap her arms around him in a hug. "I thought I'd lost you both. The morning after the fire. No one could tell me what had happened. I only learned later. I'm sorry Izuku. If I had known I would have searched for you. I would have taken care of you. But they thought you had died. That your quirk had killed you." Izuku was starting to piece together things. He knew his mother and had been close with Mitsuki. But... "You... you don't hate me?" 

Mitsuki let go of Izuku in surprise. She looked into his eyes full of guilt and saddness. "No Izuku, I don't blame you for what happened. I don't hate you. Your quirk... I don't know what it is... But I know you, Izuku. Such a kind and careful child would never have done something to hurt your mother. What happened was an accident. Your quirk ran out of control. It's not your fault." Izuku's face remained neutral but his eyes started to shimmer and in the silence, tears fell down his cheeks. Soon they flowed so hard he couldn't keep his eyes open. He rose and turned away. Mitsuki could tell he was trying his best to stay calm and recover his dignity. _Wherever you are Inko, I know you would love nothing more than to wrap him up in your arms and tell him the same thing._ Mitsuki waited patiently, she looked at the pussy cats who were in the same state as Izuku. Each one was handling it differently. Mandalay was looking away while wiping at her eyes. Pixie-Bob was close to breaking down, hiccupping instead. Ragdoll was hiding her face. Tiger was the worst though, he has weeping in full and desperately padding at his face with a towel he seemed to have quickly retrieved from the adjourning kitchen.

Minutes went by as everyone went through a period of quiet cathartic crying. After many tissues, deep breathes, and clearing of throats. Izuku set himself at attention in front of the Bakugo matriarch once more. "Mrs. Bakugo-" once again Izuku was cut off with a gesture from her. "I would prefer it if you called me Mitsuki. Mrs. Bakugo makes me sound old." Mitsuki said this with a smirk on her face. Izuku nodded before restarting, "Mitsuki, I formally apologize for what happened between myself and Bakugo Katsuki. I took things too far after he challenged me to a fight for an apology for his words to me. I am ashamed that I let myself lose control during the duel." Izuku finished with a deep bow. "I accept your apology Izuku, and forgive you. Though I still don't know how this all started. Can you tell me what Katsuki said to you to get you to fight him?" Izuku rose and carefully remembered what Katsuki had said. "He called me a murderer and insinuated I purposefully killed my mother in a public space." _IZUKU!_ The thought was not his own, he heard Sosaki's voice in his head. He quickly turned to look at her and the look of horror on each of his guardian's faces told him he had made a social blunder yet again. "He. DID. **WHAT!?!?** "

In the end it took a great deal of restraining and begging for Mitsuki to calm down. On the outside at least. She was more than tempted to drag Katsuki here to apologize again, hell, to apologize a thousand times for saying something that terrible. But she also knew where this came from. Mitsuki remembered the years of depression that came after learning what happened. She didn't like to remember how bad it got, but she remembered the drinking, the therapy, and the anti-depressants. It took four years, four very painful years. Katsuki had suffered back then too and he put the blame on Izuku. "Compared to what my son suffered, his words and actions are far worse. And do NOT even attempt to argue that fact." She pointed to the Pussy Cats who were even now trying to downplay her son's words. "I know my son. He does not think before he speaks. I am certain Izuku is not exaggerating." With that act of condemnation, the Pussy Cats now seemed ready to accept that Izuku's response was within reason, teenager or not. "I understand he gave you an apology afterwards. Now he's going to apologize to Inko when he gets home." Mitsuki intended to give her son a real reason to regret his actions.

** The next day **

Mei scratched her head and then crumpled another design into a ball before tossing it in the trash. It simply wasn't in her nature to do a project with no inspiration. There was certainly a desire, a need as strong as any before. Something to make up for the other day. After the fight she had been so disturbed. That unstable blonde had just appeared at lunch and called her new friend a murderer and a monster. But when they fought, Izuku had been really strong and beaten him. Then he had burned the other boy, and the look on his face... But when she thought about it, who wouldn't be angry. And yet almost immediately after, she saw Izuku look horrified. She knew he was afraid of what he'd done. And yesterday he avoided her. She wanted to talk to him. To tell him it was okay. That it was alright to get angry sometimes. That she was sorry for getting scared. So caught up in her recollection that when she looked at the new sketch she had been tracing she panicked when she saw it was a sketch of Izuku when he had been standing ready in the dojo... without his undershirt and an eight pack. She shredded the sketch into snow before sweeping it into the trash. After a moment of hyperventilating and quickly checking no one had seen her sketch she leaned forward towards her drawing board before letting her head hit it with a thunk.

"Can we talk?" Mei whirled around in haste, but instead of her worst fear, it was only Weston. They hadn't talked much yesterday, at all really. They shared glances but nothing in the way of a conversation. "Yes?" She didn't know why Weston was here but he looked anxious. He peered at her empty sketchbook and nodded, "can't think of anything either can you?" Mei relaxed a little and nodded. "I've been trying to come up with... something. Anything to show Midoriya I'm sorry about how I treated him after the fight. He won't talk to me or even look at me and... I feel too guilty to force a conversation. It's so strange. Normally I'm never bothered by these sorts of things." Weston nodded in sympathy before responding with, "I'm feeling the same way. I think he just wants to be left alone but... it feels wrong not to try and say something to him." And with that made clear they looked at one another before looking over to the far corner of the massive workshop space. It was massive, enough space for each student to have a personal workspace with cubicle half height walls, a tac-board, drafting table, drawers and a tool cabinet. The rest of the space held a number of different communal work stations featuring every machine shop tool, machine, forges, printers of all kinds, a divided area with welding tools and masks, anything you could think of needing to make the equipment of heroes, it was there in that space. In that corner by the massive furnaces where few could stand the heat, Midoriya had made his personal work area. He had purposefully taken the took box and several drawers over and put up a dividing wall, evidently to help keep the heat of him working from sweeping through the workshop.

"Perhaps... we can make something together. I don't have a lot of practice with manufacturing things, I'm more a mix of programming and sensory systems." Mei looked at Weston for a moment and then thought of something and she felt the spark of inspiration. "I know what we can make!" Before Weston could ask what it was, she was busy sketching. She didn't mind Weston staring over her shoulder, the whole time he didn't say a thing. When she was finished she looked at her new partner, "Well? What do you think?" Weston looked back and smiled. "It's perfect."

Izuku stopped to examine his work. One offering was finished. It had been the less complex of the two. The other however was progressing quickly now that all of it's individual parts had been fashioned and carefully sculpted. One last piece to place and a final test before it was ready. Slowly and carefully Izuku lowered in the glass into it's fitting before placing the locking ring over it. Fastening the glass in place in a seamless form. Then the bell rang and Izuku looked up.

Tuesday and Thursday the first four periods of the day became one long support department period which is devoted to either learning manufacturing methods and design concepts from Maijima Sensei, or free form lab time. Working in the Workshop or one of the smaller dedicated labs earned you work hours, of which you needed a minimum amount to pass each year. You had to clock your time to make sure you earned those hours. The remaining two periods after lunch became two of the four other general courses you were required to take like math and English.

The bell in the workshop could be set to a certain day's schedule. This being a Tuesday, Izuku had finished his work right on time. _Perfect, I can present them at lunch. Although, is that an appropriate time to do so? Would it perhaps be better to wait until the end of the day?_ Izuku's thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the entrance to his workspace. He turned to see Maijima Sensei standing in the frame. "Your the last one here Midoriya, if you miss lunch you'll not get a chance to eat until classes are over. Now get moving." Izuku straightened and thanked Maijima Sensei before quickly grabbing his offerings, deciding lunch would be a suitable time after all. Izuku rushed down the hall after his class, catching up with them just as they were entering the crowd around the cafeteria entrance. Izuku restrained his Enochlophobia this time and simply waited at the back. Once the majority had passed through, Izuku filed in after them and started for the line leading to the kitchens. Then he felt a pair of hands on his shoulders and looked to see that Hatsume and Weston had ambushed him. "Don't worry Midoriya, we've got your food for you over here. Come sit with us." Izuku was... pleased that his friends had invited him to eat with them... but how did they already have food at their table?

Mei sat down with Weston across from her, while Midoriya was guided to a seat between them. Laying on the table in front of them was a large unopened pizza box. "Midoriya. Weston and I would like to apologize to you about what happened the other day. We... should have told that nutjob blond to get lost and stay lost. Instead we let you down. You shouldn't have had to fight him. And afterwards, when you got angry..." Mei couldn't find the words. Thankfully Weston took over, "you lost control because you were so angry. And that's okay. We're sorry for acting like you were dangerous to be around. Quirks can be... scary. But we are your friends. And friends look after each other. We couldn't think of anything better to give you to show we care, and that we're sorry." With that said, Weston opened the box and revealed it's contents. "One extra large pizza with a quarter topped with sweet & spicy peppers, and roast pork. For you. I've got the quarter with pepperoni, and Mei has the quarter with sweet suasage. The rest is plain. We figured it'll end up as leftovers." Mei felt herself smile as Midoriya inspected the pizza with surprise and a measure of happiness. "You... got this with me in mind?" "We sure did, now grab slice and tell us what you think," Mei replied.

Izuku was shocked. Yet again, people felt like they had a reason to apologize to him. He couldn't understand it himself but he wouldn't insult them by refusing. He pulled the nearest slice from it's place and onto a plate before remembering his own offerings were in pockets on his tool belt. He hadn't removed it so he could keep them safe. "Before I do. I gave a peace offering of my own for both of you." From a large long pocket he extracted Hatsume's gift. He handed the specially made goggles to her, "Hand made. The metal is brass with additional metals to make it corrosion resistant. The glass is treated obsidian which will be stronger than normal glass and can help reduce glare as well as protect your eyes from flying debris." Hatsume took them with care and examined them closely. "Your quirk is tied to your vision, so eye protection seems doubly important." Hatsume took one more moment to admire it before fastening it around her head. "It's great! Though I hope you don't mind if I make some visual changes. Some personal touches." Izuku shook his head, unbothered by the idea.

"For you Weston. I have this." From another pocket, he withdrew a small hammer with a round head, carefully made to be counter balanced perfectly. "I've had to fashion all my own tools. So many of the ones here must be made by some slipshod fool. I pick one up and the thing feels like the head will fly off when I bring it back to swing! The worst are the tap hammers, I picked one up and I shuddered. How are you supposed to focus on your work if your too busy trying not to keep the hammer on target? Well, I made this as part of a collection tools for both of you. When you get a chance, use it and tell me what you think." Weston took the hammer and held it by the grip. In a strange way, despite feeling near weightless, it felt good to hold. "Thank you. I'm not entirely sure when I'll get the chance but... I'll see if I can think of something to use it on. I promise." Izuku nodded in understanding. More than that, he felt relieved. His gifts had been accepted and the damage had been repaired. "Now then, let's eat."

**Meanwhile**

Bjorn couldn't stand anymore. He could feel every broken bone. Four cracked ribs, his right hand was less now dust, and one of his knees had given out trying to hold it back. The thing loomed over him, it hands locked together and stopped a centimeter from his ursine snout. Even broken on his back he had made one last attack at his opponent. His left hand was buried in it's chest, where it's heart should be, surging electric power fighting against it's regenerative response. "The test is over. Thank you Valdi. This information will be most valuable in improving it. When unleashed, All Might will have a reason to fear again." With a growl he extracted his hand before ceasing the flow of power. In moments the Nomu's gut had filled in with new flesh. The whole time it hadn't moved in response. "Nomu, return to your station." Now given an order, the monster loped off into the dark hallway beyond the arena they had been fighting. Bjorn tried to rise despite the harm inflicted upon him. His knee flared and all he managed was to sit up onto his other, still functioning knee. He breathed deep and fought the pain down. He had suffered worse in the past. A dark thought passed, _you are getting old. You are growing weak._ Bjorn snorted and pushed himself onto one leg. He fought to get his other leg beneath him, to at least stand before his master. Beaten, bloody, but unbowed. The snap of his right knee dislocating was drowned out by his roar of pain as he fell forward.

"Enough Valdi." From the darkness, inky tendrils appeared and sunk into his flesh. In moments the pain faded as a number of healing quirks repaired the damage he had sustained. His knee snapped back into place, his right hand reformed out of the bloody mess it had been, and his chest creaked before being restored. The tendrils receded into the dark and Bjorn surged to his feet. "Send for it again! I will not be bested by a heartless abomination grown from a test tube. _HRRRRRrrrrrrr!_ " The sting of defeat was worse than the pain of his wounds. Three times now he had fought the Nomu, three times it had beaten him down. He had hoped to end it this time. He realized the thing had no sense of self preservation, it's regeneration made anything less than a decisive strike meaningless. So he planned to strike it in the heart. Only to find the creature's heart was replicated in both parts of the chest, that was the only possibility that made sense. Even if you broke one, the other still beat. But now he had the knowledge to finish it. He would prove he was fit to end the Symbol of Decay.

"How many times does Nomu need to crush you before you realize the truth. You aren't strong enough. Only Sensei could make something that can end All Might. You insult him with your stubbornness." Bjorn growled as he wheeled round on the offending voice. "That thing cannot kill All Might, it lacks the spirit of a true warrior. To fight with every ounce of strength and rip the heart from your foe even if you have to do so with every limb ripped away and a jaw of broken teeth! It cannot kill All Might. And neither can you, whelp!" It felt like a sick joke to Bjorn when All for One introduced the sickly pale wretch as his pupil and eventual successor. Worse still that he would not be a part of the strike force which would kill him! All Might! Symbol of Decay and Preserver of Weakness. This Shigaraki looked like he had already died years ago and yet refused to rot away as all dead things should. Maybe it had something to do with his quirk. All for One had forbade the two of them from fighting each other. Perhaps All for One feared Bjorn ripping the pale bag of bones to pieces before he he could be put back together. Well so be it, Shigaraki may enjoy All for One's protection now but when he failed... All for One does not tolerate failure and in the past, Bjorn had been his executioner. No reason to think that had changed.

"Send it in again." A sound like a resigned sigh hissed from the dark before All for One decided to grant Bjorn's request. "Nomu, return to the arena." Bjorn turned back to the hallway entrance. Moments later Nomu lumbered in and this time Bjorn didn't wait for it to come to him. He charged yelling, "[A thousand scars. What is one more?](https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/leagueoflegends/images/f/f4/Volibear_Original_Q.ogg/revision/latest?cb=20200513074657)"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you wondering, Mei sketched doodles of them all eating pizza with the caption: "Pizza Party!" Sometimes it the simple things that are best. And for those wondering why a "balanced hammer" is better than your average hammer. I have handled old hand made tools belonging to my great grandfather and not only do they feel remarkably light for their actual weight, I feel a great deal more comfortable swinging them than one I could buy at your local hardware store. Quality tools are worth their weight in gold, in that they save you time, effort, and sore thumbs ;)

**Author's Note:**

> Oh god I'm starting another one. Now I have three stories running at the same time. BRILLIANT IDEA ME! But when my muse gives me ideas I write. This one I think is an interesting idea. Its pretty grim though, sorry if that upsets you.
> 
> If you did enjoy then let me know with comments, Kudos, and a bookmark!


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